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Southern  Branch 
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Form  L  1 


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'MAR  1      1932  L^o 
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SEP  3    1942 
DEC 


71949 


Form  L-9-2m-12,'23 


APR  2  0  1950 

JUN2     1950 
APR  9     1952 

7953 


3  0  1954  , 


LIFE  ON  THE  FARM 

OR,  SCIENTIFIC  AGRICULTURE  SIMPLIFIED 


A  READING  BOOK 
FOR  GRAMMAR  AND  HIGH  SCHOOLS 


BY 


HIRAM    H.    SHEPARD 

Science  Instructor  in  the  Chicago  Normal  School 


j  6  4  o  0 

ILLUSTRATED 


CHICAGO 
A.    FLANAGAN    CO. 


COPYRIGHT,    190! 
BY   A.    FLANAGAN  CO 


S-V95 
S  5-4-  I 


PREFACE. 


Life  on  the  farm  now  is  not  what  it  used  to  be. 
The  general  development  of  the  age  accounts  for 
this.  Each  year  adds  something  new  to  the  agri- 
cultural field,  and  not  infrequently  are  these  new 
things  so  complex  in  their  nature  that  the  broadest 
scientific  knowledge  is  required  for  their  interpre- 
tation and  use.  There  is  probably  no  other  indus- 
try in  which  so  many  branches  of  science  enter  as 
farming;  nearly  the  whole  list  can  be  used  in  some 
way  or  other. 

This  volume  is  designed,  primarily,  as  a  reader, 
or  text-book,  in  rural  schools  of  agricultural  re- 
gions; but  we  think  it  could  be  used  with  profit  in 
r\both  village  and  city  schools.  Pupils  can  learn  to 

ad  by  reading  about  real  things  which  are  in 
close  touch  with  their  daily  lives,  and  which  they 
^  wish  to  remember,  as  well  by  reading  about  remote, 
fictitious  things  which  they  can  not  and  do  not  care 
to  remember.  First-hand  knowledge  should  be 
learned  before  any  other.  The  things  to  be  studied 
on  a  farm  are  full  of  interest,  beauty,  and  utility. 
Where  is  a  field  more  varied  and  vital  than  the  one 


4  PREFACE. 

m 

which  includes  soil,  air,  light,  heat,  plants,  germs, 
insects,  birds,  and  domestic  animals? 

Our  aim  has  been  to  treat  the  subjects  scien- 
tifically, but  with  as  few  needless  technicalities  as 
possible. 

Acknowledgment  is  due  to  Prof.  Lewis  W.  Col- 
well,  principal  of  the  Linne  Grammar  School,  Chi- 
cago, Illinois,  for  his  suggestions  in  the  first  reading 
of  the  manuscript;  to  Prof.  Alden  S.  Rinker,  for  the 
use  of  three  photographs;  and  to  Mr.  C.  W.  Mogg, 
for  the  use  of  three  photographs.  Much  help  has 
also  been  derived  from  the  farmers  in  and  around 
Linn,  Illinois,  with  whom  we  spend  two  or  three 
months  each  summer.  They  have  been  untiring 
in  their  efforts  to  explain  and  demonstrate  prac- 
tical farm  work.  Especial  gratitude  is  due  to  Mr. 
William  F.  Corrie,  a  boy  companion  in  farm  life 
and  work,  and  who  still  is  ever  ready  to  explain 
how  wealth  can  be  secured  from  wornout  land, 
and  how  a  successful,  happy  life  can  be  found  on 
a  farm. 

If  this  volume  helps,  only  in  a  small  way,  to 
explain  some  of  the  general  principles  of  agricul- 
ture, to  lend  an  interest  to  the  appreciation  and  the 
enjoyment  of  nature,  and  to  elevate  the  dignity 
and  nobility  of  farm  life,  we  shall  feel  well  repaid 
for  the  labor  of  its  preparation. 

HIRAM  H.  SHEPARD. 

Chicago  Normal  School, 
October,  1901. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

PREFACE       7 

CHAPTER  I— THE  SOIL. 

How  SOIL  is  FORMED 9 

WATER  TRANSPORTS  SOIL 12-13 

EFFECTS  OF  SOIL  EROSION  ON  THE  SURFACE   OF 

THE  EARTH    .        .        .                 .        .        .  14-18 

f>uTiFACE  TENSION,  EVAPORATION,  GRAVITY  .         .  19-20 

How  WATER  IN  THE  SOIL  FEEDS  PLANTS     .         .  21-22 

WHEN  AND  How  PLOWING  BENEFITS  SOIL    .         .  23 

THE  USE  OF  SOIL  AIR           .         .         .         .         .  26 

WHY  CULTIVATION  BENEFITS  CROPS      ...  27 
SOURCES  AND  USES  OF  SOIL  HEAT         ...  29 
CHEMICAL  COMPOSITION  AND  KINDS  OF  SOIL          .  34 
W'ORK   OF   CRAYFISH,    ANTS,   RODENTS,    ANGLE- 
WORMS, ETC. 39 

CHAPTER   II— PLANTS. 

SOIL  THE  IDEAL  HOME  FOR  PLANTS      ...  42 

How  PLANTS  ARE  DISTRIBUTED  OVER  THE  EARTH  43-44 

THE  STRUGGLE  OF  PLANTS  FOR  EXISTENCE   .        .  45 

SIMPLE  AND  COMPLEX  PLANTS       .                 .        .  47 

ORGANS  AND  FUNCTIONS  OF  PLANTS       ...  51 

WHY  PLANTS  HAVE  so  MANY  ROOTS  AND  LEAVES  53 

SOME  INTERESTING  FACTS  ABOUT  LEAVES      .        .  55-59 

5 


6  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

WHERE  LEAVES  GET  THEIR  MATERIAL        .        .  60 

ARRANGEMENT,  NUMBER,  AND  FORMS  OF  LEAVES  62-67 

WHAT  PLANTS  DO  WITH  THEIR  FOOD    ...  68 

THE  IMPORTANCE  OF  PERFECT  SEEDS    ...  70 

INDIVIDUAL  PLANTS,  THEIR  GROWTH  AND  USES    .  73-84 
(Indian  Corn,  Potatoes,  Beans,  Peas) 

CHAPTER  III— TREES. 

THE  STUDY  OF  TREES  OF  GREAT  IMPORTANCE       .  85 

How  TREES  BENEFIT  LIFE  ....  87 

PLANTING  AND  CULTIVATING  GROVES     ...  88 

TREES  AFFORD  BEAUTY  AND  SHELTER  BIRDS        .  89 

CHARACTERISTICS  AND  USES  OF  INDIVIDUAL  TREES    92-103 
(Elm,  Maple,  Oak,  Cottonwood,  Poplar,  Hickory) 

CHAPTER  IV— INSECTS. 

THE  FOUR  PERIODS  IN  INSECT  LIFE      .         .         .  104 
WHAT  INSECTS  EAT  DURING  THESE  STAGES  .         .  105-107 
INTELLIGENCE  DISPLAYED  BY  INSECTS  IN  SECUR- 
ING FOOD,  ETC.      ......  108-115 

How  INSECTS  AID  IN  PLANT  LIFE         .        .         .  109-112 

INSECT  ENEMIES   .......  112 

MEANS  FOR  DESTROYING  INSECTS          .         .         .  115 

SOME  COMMON  INSECT  PESTS         .         .         .         .  117 

LIFE-HISTORY  OF  THE  HOUSE  FLY       .        .        .  117-119 

WEEVILS,  How  AND  WHERE  THEY  WORK    .         .  120 
GRANARY  WEEVIL,  GRAIN  MOTH,   INDIAN   MEAL 

MOTH 122-123 

OPERATIONS  OF  THE  HESSIAN  FLY        .        .        .  124 

BUGS  IN  GENERAL,  THE  SQUASH  BUG     .         .         .  126 

How  TO  KEEP  OUT  INSECTS         ....  12^- 


CONTENTS.  7 

PACK 

CHAPTER  V— BIRDS. 

PURPOSES  OF  BIRDS  IN  THE  CYCLE  OF  LIFE  .         .  130 

WHAT  BIRDS  FEED  UPON       .         .         .         .         .  131 

RELATION  OF  THE  FOOD  OF  BIRDS  TO  FARMING 

AND  GARDENING      .         .         .         .         .         .  134 

WHY  BIRDS  SHOULD  BE  PROTECTED      .         .     134  136-139 
PLEASURE  FROM  THE  BEAUTY  AND  THE  CHEERFUL 

SONGS  OF  BIRDS     .         .         .         .         .         .  138 

INDIVIDUAL  BIRDS — THE  USEFUL  WOODPECKER    .  139 
WHY  THE  SWALLOW  SHOULD  BE  PROTECTED          .    141-143 
THE  MEADOW  LARK,  ITS  FOOD,    ITS  CHEERFUL 

SONG      ........  144 

UNWISE  DESTRUCTION  OF  QUAILS  AND  SPARROWS  147 
THE  OWL,  THE   HOUSE  WREN,    ROBINS      BLUE- 
BIRDS, BOBOLINKS  .         .         .         .           133,  148,  150 

CHAPTER  VI— BACTERIA. 

WHAT  BACTERIA  ARE   .        .        .         .        .        .  151 

THE      THREE     CLASSES  —  USEFUL,       HARMFUL, 

NEITHER  USEFUL  NOR  HARMFUL  .         .         .  151 

SHAPES  OF  BACTERIA,  How  THEY  GROW      .        .  152 

CONDITIONS  OF  LIFE  AND  ACTIVE  EXISTENCE        .  154 
How  BACTERIA  PRESERVE  LIFE  AND  MAKE  SOILS 

FERTILE 155 

WHY   HEAT  AND   MOISTURE   INJURE  GRAIN  AND 

HAY 158 

CAUSES  OF  DECAY  IN  FRUITS,  VEGETABLES  AND 

MEATS 158 

HOW  FOOD  MAY  BE  PRESERVED       ....  l6o 

SOURCES  OF  MILK  CONTAMINATION       .        .        .  161 
BACTERIA  BENEFICIAL  IN   BUTTER  AND  CHEESE- 
MAKING          164 

How  BACTERIA  CHANGE  CIDER  TO  VINEGAR         .  165 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

A  Beautiful  Farm  Scene Frontispiece 

Soil-Building  in  the  Forest 10 

Soil-Building  in  the  Swamp       .......  12 

Soil -Wearing  Along  the  Roadside 15 

Soil-Wearing  Along  the  Brook  .  s 17 

Where  the  Soil  is  Well  Cultivated 30 

Red  Clover,  Timothy,  Oats  and  Wheat 45 

An  Autumn  Corn  Field 46 

Hay  Cutting  and  Stacking 48 

Hay  Stacks 51 

In  the  Wheat  Field 57 

Leaves  and  Blossoms 64 

Threshing  Wheat 67 

Measuring  Wheat  at  the  Thrasher 71 

Corn  Growing 74 

Cutting  Corn  with  a  Machine 76 

Southern  Pines   ..........  86 

Cottonwood  Tree 90 

The  Elm  and  the  Box  Elder 93 

Cabbage  Butterfly,  Caterpillar  and  Chrysalis      ....  105 

Cecropia  Moth    ..........  107 

How  Insects  Carry  Pollen in 

The  Dragon  Fly 114 

Woolly  Aphis  of  the  Apple    .        .        .  •              .        .        .        .  121 

Squashvine  Borer        .........  127 

The  Kingfisher 130 

The  Woodpecker 132 

The  Screech  Owl 135 

The  Bobolink 137 

The  Swallow 141 

The  Bluebird 144 

The  Robin 149 

Bacteria 152 

8 


LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


CHAPTER  I. 

I  £4  00 
THE  SOIL. 

How  soil  is  formed.  Relation  of  water  to  soil.  Water  both  destruc- 
tive and  useful.  Movement  of  water  in  the  soil.  Where  the 
water  goes.  Retention  of  soil  water.  When  plowing  benefits 
soil.  Soil  air.  Why  cultivation  is  beneficial.  Effect  of  air 
pressure.  Soil  temperature.  Relation  of  heat  to  soil.  Chemical 
composition  and  kinds  of  soil.  Elements  composing  the  soil. 
Relation  of  earthworms  and  other  small  animals  to  soil  fertility. 

The  soil  is  the  source  from  which  many  useful 
things  come.  Wheat,  from  which  bread  is  made, 
comes  directly  from  the  soil;  and  most  of  the  meat 
we  eat  was  once  in  the  form  of  grain  or  hay,  and 
this  grows  directly  from  the  soil.  The  same  may 
be  said  of  the  different  kinds  of  cloth,  leather, 
carpets,  lumber,  and  a  host  of  other  useful  things. 

Soil  is  composed  of  decayed  rocks,  and  of  the 
remains  of  plants  and  animals.  It  has  been  form- 
ing for  thousands  of  years,  and  the  same  work  is 
going  on  to-day. 

Roots  of  plants,  from  the  tiny  weed  that  grows 
by  the  roadside  to  the  forest  tree,  have  the  power 
of  penetrating  the  earth  in  such  a  way  as  to  break 

9 


10  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

up  the  rocks  and  make  them  fit  food  for  plants. 
This  is  done  in  several  ways.  Growing  roots  have 
great  power  of  expansion,  so  much  so  that  when 
they  enter  the  cracks  of  rocks,  or  grow  between 
rock  layers,  they  crowd  these  segments  apart  and 


SOIL  BUILDING    IN   THE   FOREST. 


break  the  rocks  to  pieces.  Then  again,  the  roots 
of  plants  have  little  glands  in  them.  These  send  out 
acids  which  have  the  power  of  dissolving  rocks  and 
small  pieces  of  earth.  In  this  way  plants  are  enabled 
to  take  earthy  material  into  the  structure  of  their 


THE  SOIL.  11 

bo'dies  as  food.  When  they  die  and  decay,  this  is  left 
as  food  for  other  plants.  The  gray  ash  left  after 
plants  are  burned,  is  the  earthy  matter. 

As  with  most  things  in  nature,  there  is  a  constant 
and  ceaseless  change  of  activity  in  the  process  of 
soil-building.  Plant  food,  stored  in  the  soil  during 
one  season,  is  partly  washed  away  by  rains,  partly 
taken  up  by  plants,  and  partly  left  over  for  future 
years.  This  work  goes  on  year  in  and  year  out,  and 
must  continue  to  do  so  as  long  as  we  exist  upon  the 
earth,  for  it  is  the  great  storehouse  from  which 
alone  food  for  plants  and  animals  may  be  drawn. 

RELATION    OF   WATER   TO    SOIL. 

Scattered  through  the  air  in  all  places,  and  at  all 
times,  are  countless  numbers  of  very  fine  dust  par- 
ticles. They  are  so  small  that  they  cannot  be  seen 
with  the  naked  eye,  yet  their  presence  in  the  air  is 
probably  one  of  the  causes  of  the  blueness  of  the 
sky.  Every  gust  of  wind  catches  them  up  and  bears 
them  away  high  over  our  heads  and  over  the  tops 
of  trees  and  mountains.  The  heavier  particles  fall 
again  when  the  air  becomes  still,  but  the  finer  and 
lighter  ones  float  in  the  air  a  very  long  time.  This 
is  true  not  only  of  fine  bits  of  wood,  paper,  and 
such  light  material,  but  of  rocks,  and  the  heavy 
metals.  When  anything  is  powdered  fine  enough, 
each  particle  has  so  much  surface  exposed  to  the 
air,  compared  with  its  volume,  that  it  will  float  as 
lightly  as  a  feather. 


12  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM.      - 

Men  who  have  made  a  careful  study  of  rain  say 
that  these  fine  dust  particles  in  the  air  have  the 
power  of  attracting  water  vapor.  When  these  little 
dust  particles  have  gathered  a  thick  film  of  water 
around  themselves,  they  become  so  heavy  that  they 
can  no  longer  float,  and  so  fall  to  the  earth  as 


SOIL-BUILDING   IN   THE   SWAMP. 


drops  of  rain.  They  grow  larger  and  larger  as  they 
fall,  till,  on  striking  the  ground,  the  surface  of  a 
pond,  or  the  leaves  of  plants,  they  are  no  longer 
fine  particles  of  mist,  but  drops  of  water  large 
enough  to  be  seen  and  felt. 


THE  SOIL.  13 

Rain,  in  falling,  not  only  carries  down  with  it  these 
particles  of  dust  around  which  it  clings,  but  acids, 
which  help  to  dissolve  the  rocks.  Rock  thus  dis- 
solved is  caught  in  the  soil  to  remain  as  plant  food; 
or  is  borne  away  into  streams,  and  thence  to  the 
sea.  Here  some  of  it  is  taken  up  by  such  animals 
as  oysters  and  corals.  They  are  thus  enabled  to 
secrete  the  hard  outer  skeletons  of  their  bodies. 
Some  of  it  finds  its  way  down  through  the  earth 
to  the  permanent  water  layers,  or  veins,  from 
whence  we  get  it  as  the  hard  water  of  wells  and 
springs. 

Carbonic  acid  is  brought  down  by  every  rain.  It 
is  constantly  poured  into  the  air  from  the  chimneys 
of  houses  and  factories,  from  the  lungs  of  animals, 
and  from  decomposing  vegetation.  It  has  the 
power,  when  mixed  with  water,  of  dissolving  lime- 
stone. Many  caves  in  Kentucky  and  Indiana  have 
been  formed  by  this  action.  Water  bearing  this 
acid  in  solution  has  trickled  down  into  the  crevices 
of  the  limestone  deposits  of  those  regions  and 
gradually  eaten  out  cavities  so  large  that  people 
can  walk  into  some  of  them  for  miles. 

Rain,  then,  not  only  falls  upon  the  earth  to  make 
it  productive,  but  it  also  washes  the  air  clean  of  its 
impurities,  making  it  wholesome  and  pure  for  us  to 
breathe.  The  atmosphere  of  cities  has  more 
impurities  in  it  than  that  of  the  country.  For  this 
reason  the  free,  open  country  is  a  more  healthful 
place  for  dwelling. 


LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


WATER    BOTH    DESTRUCTIVE    AND    USEFUL. 

Water  is  destructive  as  well  as  useful.  Evidence 
of  this  can  be  seen  after  every  heavy  rain  in  the 
amount  of  earth  washed  down  from  the  steep, 
unprotected  hillsides.  Similar  action  takes  place 
on  the  more  level  ground,  especially  when  it  is  not 
protected  by  plant  growth,  and  even  then  some  is 
washed  away.  Some  of  the  soil  washed  away  by 
the  water  is  carried  only  a  few  feet,  and  set!fes 
down  of  its  own  weight  if  the  water  flows  slowly  or 
spreads  out  into  shallow  pools.  Some  is  carried 
many  rods,  sometimes  settling  down  and  spreading 
out  in  a  thin  layer  over  a  large  piece  of  low  land. 
The  finest  soil  is  carried  into  the  rivers  and  finally 
reaches  the  sea.  More  than  a  hundred  million  tons 
are  thus  carried  annually  by  the  Mississippi  to  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico. 

There  is  a  difference  between  water  wearing 
land  away  and  dissolving  it  away.  Soil  worn  away 
makes  water  muddy,  but  the  water  may  hold,  in 
addition,  dissolved  matter  which  is  not  seen. 
Muddy  water  soon  becomes  clear  when  not  in 
motion;  but  after  it  becomes  perfectly  clear,  it 
nearly  always  contains  other  earthy  matter  which 
will  not  settle,  regardless  of  the  length  of  time 
that  it  remains  guiet.  This  dissolved  matter, 
however,  can  be  obtained  by  evaporating  the 
water. 

The  washing  away  of  soil  by  the  action  of  water 


THE  SOIL. 


15 


can  scarcely  be  overestimated.  One  can  see  the 
effects  of  it  by  the  roadside,  beside  the  small 
rivulets  and  streams,  in  the  garden  and  yard, 
and  in  the  fields.  It  is  the  force  that  cuts  down 
the  hills  and  spreads  them  out  into  level  plains. 


SOIL-WEARING    ALONG    THE    ROADSIDE. 

It  takes  hold  of  everything  it  can  grasp  and 
carries  it  from  one  place  to  another.  A  strip 
of  plowed  soil  several  inches  deep  may  be 
washed  by  a  heavy  rain  to  a  lower  level  on  the 
opposite  side  of  a  wide  field,  or  even  into  an 


16  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

adjoining  field.  There  is  not  so  much  loss,  though, 
if  nothing  more  disturbs  it;  but  when  nothing  hin- 
ders, and  the  swiftly-flowing  torrent  carries  it  into 
the  rivers,  and  thence  to  the  sea,  then  the  loss,  so 
far  as  the  present  is  concerned,  is  complete.  Those 
having  hilly  or  rolling  land  should  cultivate  it 
so  as  to  prevent  washing  away  as  much  as  pos- 
sible. 

Stems,  roots,  branches,  and  leaves  of  plants,— 
especially  the  roots, — help  to  hold  the  soil  against 
the  erosive  action  of  water.  Grass  is  especially 
good  on  ordinary  ground,  and  trees  for  steep  hills. 
All  hills  that  wash  away  so  much  that  they  become 
barren  in  most  places,  should  be  planted  with  trees 
so  as  to  stop  the  wearing.  The  trees  would  also  be 
a  great  benefit  in  many  other  ways  besides  their 
value  as  timber  (which  would  result  after  a  number 
of  years).  Soil  which  unavoidably  washes  from 
cultivated  fields  can  be  caught  and  held  on  the 
lower  ground  by  keeping  the  lower  ground  planted 
in  grass  of  some  kind.  This  not  only  tends  to  level 
up  the  hilly  fields,  but  the  soil  thus  made  is  of  the 
best  quality,  being  deep,  rich,  and  in  many  cases 
almost  inexhaustible.  The  writer  has  just  visited 
a  large  field  which  is  covered  with  a  layer  of  soil, 
averaging  about  two  feet  in  depth,  washed  down 
from  the  higher  land  above  it.  The  crops  of 
wheat,  oats,  clover,  and  corn  now  growing  on  it 
surpass  those  of  any  of  the  adjoining  fields. 


THE  SOIL. 


17 


ONE    NIGHT  S    RAIN-STORM. 


It  is  both  interesting  and  instructive  to  walk  out 
after  a  heavy  summer's  rain  and  see  the  small, 
muddy  rivulets  running  in  almost  every  direction, 
following  wagon  ruts  in  the  open  roads,  plow-fur- 


S01L-WEARING    ALONG    THE    BROOK. 


rows  in  the  fields,  and  mole-tunnels  everywhere. 
Last  night's  heavy  rain  washed  from  about  an  acre 
of  newly  plowed  ground  fully  a  ton  of  soil,  which 
settled  by  the  roadside  at  the  corner  of  the  field. 


18  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

It  reminds  one  of  the  delta  of  the  Nile  or  the  Mis- 
sissippi. Farther  down  the  road  are  hundreds  of 
tongues  of  sediment  a  few  inches  wide  and  several 
feet  long.  They  have  left  little  gullies  from 
which  the  earth  has  been  washed.  The  main 
ditch,  which  receives  all  this  water,  from  both  east 
and  west,  is  about  six  feet  deep  and  ten  feet  wide. 
The  muddy  water  is  rushing  wildly  down  its  chan- 
nel this  morning,  and  will  be  in  the  Wabash  before 
many  hours.  In  some 'places  the  banks  are  so  low 
that  some  of  the  water  flowed  out  into  the  open 
fields  and  there,  becoming  quiet,  left  a  thin  sedi- 
ment of  fine  mud.  A  wide  board,  which  happened 
to  be  lying  in  a  pasture  close  by,  was  covered  with 
a  sediment  of  soil  about  half  an  inch  thick.  The 
force  of  gravity  impels  the  water  onward  to  the 
larger  streams,  and  draws  it  down  into  the  earth, 
but  at  the  same  time  it  is  pulling  still  harder  on 
every  particle  of  the  heavier-  earth  and  brings  it  to 
rest  whenever  the  water  slackens  its  speed. 

Not  only  is  the  earth  from  the  cultivated  fields 
and  the  open  roads  thus  torn  loose  and  carried 
away,  but  the  banks  and  beds  of  the  small  streams 
themselves  lose  their  share.  During  some  rainy 
seasons,  this  amounts  to  nearly  a  foot  each  month. 
A  small  elm  tree  which  stood  in  firm  soil  a 
month  ago  on  the  bank  of  the  ditch  just  men- 
tioned, was  so  undermined  by  the  action  of  last 
night's  freshet  that  only  a  few  roots  on  one 
side  are  holding  it  to  the  soft  mud.  It  is  not  able 


THE  SOIL.  19 

to  stand  erect  any  longer,  but  will  soon  lose  its 
entire  hold,  and  drift  down  the  current  to  lodge 
against  some  neighbor's  cross  fence.  In  a  similar 
manner  full  grown  trees  have  been  dug  out  and 
can  be  seen  floating  down  our  large  rivers  in  times 
of  high  water. 

MOVEMENTS    OF   WATER   IN    THE    SOIL. 

On  dipping  a  marble,  a  pebble,  or  a  pencil  in 
water  it  will  be  seen,  on  taking  it  out,  that  a  thin 
film  of  water  adheres  to  it.  A  dry  pebble,  touched 
against  the  one  already  wet,  will  take  part  of  the 
water  film  away  from  the  first  one;  and  a  third, 
touched  against  the  second,  will  do  likewise;  and  so 
on,  each  taking  a  part  of  the  water  and  holding  it 
to  itself.  A  force  within  the  earth,  called  gravity, 
pulls  everything  downward;  but  each  little  grain  of 
soil  has  a  power  within  itself  which  acts  against 
gravity,  and  keeps  a  part  of  the  rain  falling  upon 
the  earth  from  escaping  too  fast.  This  power  that 
pebbles,  grains  of  sand,  particles  of  fine  earth,  and 
a  great  many  other  things  have  of  drawing  a  film 
of  water  around  themselves  is  called  surface  ten- 
sion, or  capillarity.  It  is  a  force  just  as  truly  as 
gravity  is,  and  plays  a  very  important  part  in  agri- 
culture. 

It  will  be  found,  however,  that  those  same  things 
whicli  were  covered  with  this  thin  film  of  water, 
will,  if  left  exposed  to  free  air  for  a  short  time,  lose 
the  water  adhering  to  them  and  become  pert^c'.ly 


20  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

dry.  It  is  the  air  which  takes  the  water  away.  The 
air  has  a  power  within  itself  of  taking  water  away 
from  things.  This  is  called  evaporation,  because 
the  water  thus  taken  by  the  air  can  no  longer  be 
seen,  but  takes  the  form  of  an  invisible  vapor.  The 
power  of  evaporation  must,  in  one  sense,  be 
stronger  than  either  surface  tension  or  gravity. 
Surface  tension  pulls  water  away  from  gravity,  yet 
the  vaporizing  power  of  air  takes  it  away  from 
both.  These  three  forces  acting  together  on  water 
in  the  soil  are  the  main  ones  with  which  the 
farmer  has  to  deal.  Surface  tension  and  evapora- 
tion are  not  studied  or  understood  so  much  as  they 
should  be  in  order  to  get  the  best  results  from  the 
cultivation  of  the  soil. 

WHERE    THE    WATER    GOES. 

Water  falling  upon  the  earth  either  flows  away 
or  sinks  down  to  be  kept  in  store  for  plants.  If 
the  soil  be  already  filled  with  water,  most  of  it  runs 
away;  but  when  the  earth  is  dry,  and  the  rain  does 
not  fall  .too  fast,  nearly  all  of  it  is  absorbed.  Dur- 
ing the  winter  season,  when  little  evaporation  takes 
place,  on  account  of  the  low  temperature  of  the 
air  and  the  frozen  condition  of  the  soil,  a  great 
amount  of  water  accumulates.  Some  of  it  is  kept 
within  a  few  feet  of  the  surface  and  some  sinks 
very  deep,  according  to  the  nature  of  the  soil  below 
the  top  layer,  that  is,  the  subsoil.  If  the  subsoil 
is  of  a  loose,  open  nature,  like  sand  or  gravel,  the 


THE  SOIL.  21 

water  will  sink  through  it  very  rapidly;  but  if  it  is 
a  stiff  clay,  it  will  be  retained  for  a  very  long  time, 
generally  till  the  next  season's  growth  of  plants 
can  use  it. 

Dry  ground  which  is  wet,  say  four  inches 
deep,  by  a  rain  of  one  day  will  be  found  to  be 
wet  six  or  eight  inches  by  the  next  day.  The 
grains  of  earth  had  so  much  water  clinging  to  them 
that  they  could  not  hold  it  all  firmly;  so  gravity 
and  the  surface  tension  of  the  grains  below  pulled 
some  of  it  down  still  further.  A  limit,  however,  is 
soon  reached,  and  that  same  water  starts  on  an 
upward  course,  due  to  evaporation  at  the  surface. 
The  top  layer  of  soil  grains  gives  up  its  moisture 
to  the  air,  while  at  the  same  time  more  is 
drawn  by  capillarity  from  the  ones  below,  till  all 
the  water  has  passed  back  to  the  air  whence  it 
came. 

Not  all  of  the  water  held  by  soil  escapes  into  the 
air  if  plants  are  growing  there.  They  take  it  up 
with  their  roots  wonderfully  fast.  If  their  roots 
do  not  go  down  to  where  all  the  water  is,  the  surface 
tension  of  the  soil-grains  pulls  it  up  to  them,  and 
this  is  the  useful  office  of  that  wonderful  force.  A 
good  example  of  surface  tension  can  be  seen  along 
the  margins  of  streams  and  other  bodies  of  water. 
When  the  banks  are  dry,  it  will  be  noticed  that  the 
earth  is  wet  several  inches  above  the  surface  of 
the  water.  Posts  and  trees  standing  in  the  water 
are  also  moist  above  the  water  surface.  The 


22  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

moisture  is  drawn  upward  just  as  the  oil  is  drawn 
by  a  lamp  wick. 

Another  important  fact  should  be  mentioned 
regarding  the  capillary  movement  of  water  in  soil. 
Water  is  the  greatest  of  solvents,  that  is,  it  dis- 
solves more  substances  than  any  other.  So,  when 
water  sinks  into  the  earth,  it  dissolves  out  many  of 
the  ingredients  of  the  soil,  especially  the  plant 
foods,  and  these  would  be  permanently  lost  were 
there  no  such  power  as  surface  tension  to  bring  it 
back  again  in  reach  of  the  roots  of  plants.  Every 
one  knows,  of  course,  that  warm  water  has  greater 
dissolving  power  than  cold  water;  so,  when  the 
chilly  winter  rain  fills  the  earth  with  stores  of 
water,  it  does  not  carry  down  much  dissolved 
material  with  it;  but  when  summer  comes,  with  its 
plants,  and  its  thirsty,  warm  air  to  cause  evapora- 
tion, that  same  water  is  drawn  back  to  the  surface, 
dissolving  as  it  comes  nutritious  substances  from  the 
deeper  soil  and  leaving  them  at  the  place  most 
needed.  Then,  too,  the  warm,  summer  rains 
which  dissolve  so  many  rich  substances  of  the 
top  soil,  find  it  laced  and  interlaced  with  the  roots  of 
growing  plants  to  catch  it  before  it  can  get  away. 

The  soil,  in  its  natural  state,  such  as  that  of  a 
forest,  sees  to  it  that  all  these  forces  are  equally 
balanced,  and  tha't'there  is  little  waste;  but,  in  the 
cultivated  state,  the  conditions  are  so  changed  that 
the  soil  soon  becomes  poor  if  great  care  and  wis- 
dom are  not  exercised. 


THE  SOIL.  23 


RETENTION    OF   SOIL   WATER. 

It  is  a  fact  that,  during  the  average  year,  there  is 
not  enough  water  in  the  ground  for  the  production 
of  as  large  crops  as  it  is  possible  for  the  soil  to 
yield.  It  is  important  for  the  farmer  to  cultivate 
the  soil  so  as  to  keep  as  much  water  as  possible  in 
store  for  plant  growth.  In  many  cases, -the  water 
is  allowed  to  escape  so  rapidly  that  only  a  partial 
harvest  is  the  result.  It  escapes  from  the  soil  in 
three  ways:  by  soaking  downward,  by  evaporation 
at  the  surface,  and  by  being  absorbed  by  the  roots 
of  plants.  The  last,  however,  is  the  most  desira- 
ble, especially  when  a  useful  crop  of  plants  is  being 
grown.  It  is  difficult  to  prevent  the  soaking  down- 
ward; for,  as  has  been  said,  it  depends  largely  upon 
the  nature  of  the  subsoil.  During  most  seasons 
there  is  not  enough  water  in  the  soil  for  much 
soaking  away  to  take  place.  Not  all  of  the  water 
falling  upon  the  ground  gets  a  chance  to  soak  in. 
Often  the  field  is  left  for  the  winter  so  smooth  and 
compact  that  the  rains  and  melted  snows  quickly 
run  away. 

WHEN    PLOWING    BENEFITS    SOIL. 

Experience  has  proved  that  plowing  the  ground 
late  in  the  fall  helps  to  catch  and  retain  water. 
The  plowing  leaves  the  ground  loose,  rough,  and 
open,  so  the  winter  snows  and  rains  are  caught  and 
retained  in  the  many  small  cavities  due  to  the 


24  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

plowing.  It  is  often  in  a  better  condition,  too,  for 
early  spring  working  than  ground  not  plowed  in 
the  fall,  and  an  early  and  successful  crop  can  be 
started  under  more  favorable  conditions  than  would 
otherwise  be  possible.  When  it  is  dry  enough  to 
work,  a  good  harrowing  generally  will  reduce  it  to 
a  smooth  mellow  condition,  giving  it  the  power  to 
retain  the  largest  amount  of  heat  and  moisture. 

It  is  a  well  known  physical  fact  that  the  more 
surface  a  given  quantity  of  matter  presents  to  the 
air,  the  faster  it  will  dry  out,  or  allow  evaporation 
to  take  place.  So,  when  it  is  desired  to  retain  as 
much  water  as  possible  in  the  soil,  the  surface 
should  be  left  smooth  and  level.  After  the  ground 
is  plowed,  but  before  the  crop  is  planted,  this  is 
best  done  by  harrowing  it  down  to  a  moderately 
fine  powder.  With  crops  such  as  corn  and  pota- 
toes, which  require  cultivation  after  being  planted, 
cultivators  should  be  used  which  leave  the  soil  as 
level  as  possible.  Rows  of  plants  left  in  ridges,  or 
hilled  up,  exposing  so  much  surface  to  the  air, 
thus  allowing  the  moisture  to  escape  by  too  rapid 
evaporation,  generally  suffer  from  lack  of  water. 
Some  root  crops,  if  the  soil  be  of  a  close,  heavy 
nature,  require  this  kind  of  cultivation  in  order  to  get 
the  soil  loose  enough  for  them  to  expand  in,  but  care 
should  be  taken  to  prevent  a  complete  drying  out. 

If  the  store  of  water  which  sinks  into  the  ground 
during  the  winter  is  to  be  relied  upon  for  the  sum- 
mer's crop,  it  is  essential  to  plant  as  early  as  the 


THE  SOIL.  25 

weather  will  permit,  so  that  none  may  be  wasted  by 
evaporation,  or  used  up  by  wjeeds  before  the 
desired  crop  begins  to  grow.  Early  planting  is 
generally  best,  for  the  roots  of  plants  not  only 
drink  in  their  full  share  of  water  early  in  the  sea- 
son, but  the  ground  is  soon  shaded  by  the  growing 
leaves  crowding  out  the  weeds,  which  would  claim  a 
part  of  the  soil  nourishment.  They  also  prevent 
early  winds  from  drying  the  soil  by  not  allowing 
them  such  free  access  to  the  surface,  from  which 
they  take  away  the  moisture  very  rapidly.  All 
have  noticed  the  drying  effect  of  wind,  even  when 
the  sun  is  not  shining.  It  often  does  its  work  as 
rapidly  during  the  night  as  during  the  day.  A 
hedge-row,  a  fence,  or  even  a  strip  of  ground  with 
a  higher  growth  of  plants,  will  so  break  the  force 
of  wind  that  little  loss  will  result.  Winds  are 
beneficial  in  many  ways,  but  a  very  mild  one  may 
do  a  vast  amount  of  damage. 

SOIL   AIR. 

Surrounding  the  entire  earth  is  a  layer  of  air 
many  miles  high.  It  is  invisible  and  very  light;  yet, 
on  account  of  its  great  volume,  gravity  exerts 
such  a  pull  on  it  that  it  presses  heavily,  about  four- 
teen pounds  to  the  square-inch,  everywhere  upon 
the  surface  of  the  earth.  It  presses  heaviest,  of 
course,  upon  the  lowest  places.  Air,  which  is  so 
essential  to  plant  and  animal  life,  and  to  the  for- 
mation of  mineral  compounds,  is  composed  mainly 


26  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

of  nitrogen  and  oxygen— about  seventy-five  per 
cent  of  nitrogen  and  twenty-five  per  cent  of  oxy- 
gen. It  also  contains  small  amounts  of  other  ele- 
ments and  compounds  which  will  not  be  spoken  of 
here.  Air  is  just  as  essential  to  soil  as  water  is; 
and,  although  it  cannot  be  seen  entering  and  leav- 
ing, yet  the  soil  breathes  just  as  truly  as  plants  and 
animals  do.  That  soil  does  contain  air  may  be 
found  by  filling  any  tall  vessel  with  dry  earth  and 
pouring  water  on  it.  Bubbles  will  be  seen  to 
escape  as  the  water  sinks.  The  air  which  filled 
the  spaces  between  the  earth  particles  was  replaced 
by  the  heavier  water  and  escaped  as  bubbles  at  the 
surface. 

The  roots  of  most  plants  require  air  just  as  their 
leaves  do;  and  if  in  any  way  they  are  deprived  of 
the  supply,  the  entire  plant  will  die.  When  a  field, 
with  germinating  seeds  or  a  growing  crop,  is 
flooded  for  several  days,  great  injury  or  total 
destruction  will  result.  This  is  due  to  the  water's 
shutting  out  the  supply  of  air  which  is  so  essential 
to  germinating  seeds  and  growing  roots.  Seeds 
contain  compounds  of  such  a  nature  that  oxygen 
is  needed  for  their  transformation  before  they  can 
be  used  by  the  growing  sprouts,  and  the  air  has  to 
supply  this  needed  element. 

WHY   CULTIVATION    IS    BENEFICIAL. 

The  rapidity  of  germination  and  growth  depends 
to  a  large  extent  upon  the  quantity  of  air  supplied 


THE  SOIL.  27 

to  the  soil.  A  loose,  open  soil  allows  air  to  enter 
it  more  freely  than  does  one  of  a  close  texture; 
but  most  soils  tend  to  pack  and  become  less  porous 
after  the  crop  is  planted.  Some  means,  then,  must 
be  resorted  to  so  that  good  soil-breathing  may  be 
restored.  This  is  usually  done,  with  crops  which 
admit  of  it,  by  cultivation.  In  plowing  the  ground 
between  the  rows  of  plants,  the  broken-up  and 
falling  earth  catches  the  air  and  drags  it  down  into 
the  resulting  spaces.  If  the  roots  of  the  crop  go 
deep  into  the  earth,  then  the  deeper  the  cultivation 
the  better  for  rapid  growth. 

Sometimes  a  field  of  corn,  or  other  crop,  is  not 
cultivated  because  the  weeds  do  not  affect  it;  but 
frequent  cultivation  should  take  place  for  air  sup- 
ply to  the  roots,  and  also  for  the  conservation  of 
moisture,  even  when  all  weeds  have  been  destroyed. 
It  is  not  only  necessary  to  supply  air  to  the  roots 
of  plants  during  their  early  growing  condition,  but 
at  all  times,  from  germination  till  fruiting. 

In  a  compact,  water-filled  soil,  no  air  can  circu- 
late. Water  always  contains  some  air  in  solution 
after  falling  as  rain,  but  the  amount  is  small,  and 
its  free  oxygen  is  soon  exhausted  by  the  roots  of 
the  growing  crop.  If,  however,  there  is  a  deep, 
porous  subsoil  into  which  the  rain  may  quickly 
sink;  or  if  the  field  is  underdrained  well  with  til- 
ing, the  water  runs  away  quickly,  leaving  empty 
spaces  into  which  gravity  pulls  the  air  so  that  the 
needed  oxgyen  and  nitrogen  are  supplied.  It  is 


28  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

quite  essential,  too,  thus  to  get  rid  of  the  surplus 
water,  especially  during  very  wet  springs  and  sum- 
mers, for,  besides  opening  up  a  means  for  the  free 
circulation  of  the  air  among  the  spaces  left  by  the 
vacated  water,  the  soil  is  left  warmer  for  early 
germination  and  growth.  In  the  discussion  further 
on,  it  will  be  shown  that  water  which  has  to  leave 
the  soil  by  evaporation  at  the  surface  makes  the 
ground  so  cold  that  the  life-activities  of  plants  are 
retarded. 

EFFECT   OF   AIR   PRESSURE. 

The  pressure  of  the  air  upon  the  surface  at"  the 
earth  constantly  varies.  An  instrument  called  the 
barometer  measures  the  pressure,  and  no  two  days 
have  exactly  the  same  amount;  in  fact,  there  is 
always  a  slight,  and  often  a  great,  variation  for  two 
hours  of  the  same  day.  Various  causes  produce 
these  changes;  the  main  one  being  the  unequal 
heating  of  the  atmosphere. 

Now,  when  there  is  great  air  pressure,  the  water 
in  the  ground,  if  there  is  any  near  enough  the  sur- 
face to  be  affected,  is  pressed  further  down  by  the 
added  force,  its  place  being  taken  by  air,  produc- 
ing a  downward  current.  When  the  pressure  of 
the  air  becomes  less,  the  force  of  the  confined 
water  presses  it  back,  forcing  the  air  with  it,  and 
thus  is  produced  an  upward  current.  Not  only 
does  this  change  take  place  from  above,  but  in 
many  places  from  beneath  through  tile  drains,  and 


THE  SOIL.  29 

other  underground  channels;  but,  from  whatever 
source,  there  is  always  some  circulation  of  air  in 
the  soil  from  atmospheric  changes. 

Then,  too,  there  is  a  small  circulation  in  the  top 
few  inches  during  warm,  sunshiny  days,  when  the 
soil  is  cultivated  so  that  it  is  not  too  compact.  Air 
has  such  great  power  of  expansion  that,  under  the 
added  heat  of  noonday,  come  is  forced  out;  but, 
cooling  and  contracting  during  the  night,  it 
returns. 

Soils  which  are  open  and  well  drained,  may  have 
too  much  ventilation,  from  which  injurious  results 
may  follow.  The  air  which  enters  the  earth  goes 
there  for  the  purpose  of  supplying  the  roots  of 
plants  with  food  directly,  or  it  acts  upon  the  min- 
erals in  the  ground  and  changes  them  into  plant 
food.  If  the  air  circulates  too  freely  in  the  soil,  so 
much  food  is  formed  that  the  plants  cannot  use  it 
all  immediately,  and  some  of  it  goes  to  waste. 
Some  is  dissolved  and  washed  downward  by  the 
next  rain  beyond  recovery,  and  some  is  of  such 
a  nature  that  it  soon  loses  its  identity,  and  thus 
becomes  unfit  for  use.  It  should  be  the  aim  to 
keep  such  soils  as  moist  as  possible  at  the  surface, 
and  the  pores  well  filled  by  the  right  kind  of  culti- 
vation. 

SOIL  TEMPERATURE. 

The  soil  receives  its  heat  in  three  ways: — from 
the  interior  of  the  earth,  from  decomposition  of 


THE  SOIL.  31 

organic  matter,  and  from  the  sun  That  received 
from  the  interior  of  the  earth  is  so  small  that  it 
may  not  be  considered  here.  The  greatest 
amount  comes  from  the  sun.  This  can  be  easily 
noticed  by  observing  the  difference  in  temperature 
between  winter  and  summer,  and  day  and  night 
Both  light  and  heat  reach  the  earth  from  the  sun, 
but  light  rays  have  little  to  do  with  soil  conditions; 
on  the  other  hand,  heat  rays  play  a  very  important 
part. 

When  light  or  heat  falls  upon  an  object  it  is 
either  reflected  away  or  absorbed,  according  to  the 
color  and  other  physical  conditions  of  the  object 
upon  which  it  falls.  Light-colored  objects  reflect 
away  the  most  and  dark- colored  objects  absorb 
the  most.  A  dark-colored  object  that  absorbs 
heat  is,  of  course,  made  wrarmer  thereby.  So  the 
darker  the  color  of  soil,  other  things  not  being 
considered,  the  more  heat  rays  will  it  absorb  and 
consequently  the  warmer  it  will  be. 

Some  things  are  heated  very  quickly  but  give  up 
their  heat  just  as  quickly;  and  those  which  are  slow 
in  being  heated,  give  up  their  heat  slowly  in  return. 
Water  is  a  substance  wlv.ch  absorbs  heat  slowly 
and  retains  it  a  long  time.  The  boiling  kettle  of 
water  remains  hot  a  long  time  after  the  fire  goes 
out  and  the  stove  becomes  cold.  So  it  is  with 
soils;  some  become  very  hot  during  the  middle  of 
the  day,  and  cold  at  night.  Those  which  are 
heated  only  moderately  during  the  day,  keep  a 


32  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

considerable  amount  of  the  heat  over  night 
Sandy  soils  are  easily  heated,  but  are  not  on  the 
average  the  warm^t. 

RELATION    OF    HEAT   TO    THE    SOIL. 

The  relation  of  heat  to  the  soil  is  important. 
All  living  things,  both  plants  and  animals,  require 
a  certain  amount  of  heat  in  order  to  live  and  grow, 
With  the  higher  animals,  a  great  amount  of  heat  is 
necessary.  The  bodily  temperature  of  man  and 
many  other  animals  must  be  nearly  100°  F.  at  all 
times.  If  it  rises  a  few  degrees  higher,  or  falls  a 
few  degrees  lower  than  this,  death,  or  serious 
results  follow.  Plants,  like  some  of  the  lower  ani- 
mals, can  endure  greater  changes  of  bodily  tem- 
perature; but  there  is  a  high  and  a  low  limitvbeyond 
which  they  cannot  pass  and  live.  If  the  bodily 
temperature  becomes  either  too  high,  or  too  low, 
life-activity  ceases  permanently. 

Seeds  germinate  better  in  a  warm  than  in  a  cold 
soil.  If  the  ground  is  too  cold,  they  decay  on 
account  of  germs  that  can  work  at  a  lower  tem- 
perature. Some  seeds  sprout  best  at  a  temperature 
of  nearly  one  hundred  degrees  F.  Good  results, 
however,  follow  with  a  soil  temperature  of  50°  to 

75°  F. 

For  germination  of  seeds,  and  growth  of  young 
plants,  it  is  necessary  for  the  soil  to  be  warm  to  a 
depth  of  a  few  inches  only.  As  the  plants  grow 
larger  and  send  their  roots  down  deeper,  then 


THE  SOIL.  33 

there  is  a  necessity  for  deeper  soil  warmth.  If 
the  soil  were  warm  to  a  depth  of  several  feet  in 
early  spring,  before  plants  have  time  to  send  their 
roots  down,  a  great  amount  of  valuable  plant  food 
would  be  dissolved  on  account  of  the  increased 
temperature  of  the  water,  and  hence  lost.  So 
nature  has  provided  that  the  soil  be  warmed  down- 
ward only  as  fast  as  the  roots  of  plants  can  use  it. 

Soil  in  a  natural  state,  such  as  that  of  a  forest, 
has  a  most  wonderful  means  of  regulating  its  own 
temperature.  Covered  with  a  thick  layer  of  leaves 
each  autumn  in  our  latitude,  it  is  protected  from 
sudden  changes,  both  on  account  of  the  noncon- 
ducting property  of  the  leaves  themselves,  and  also 
of  the  confined  air  among  them.  Early  spring 
plants  have  learned  to  grow  there,  even  before  the 
frost  is  quite  all  out  of  the  ground,  and  blossom 
before  the  needed  light  for  their  full  development 
is  shut  out  by  the  dense  foliage  of  mid-summer. 
Trees  do  not  put  forth  their  buds  and  leaves  till  the 
last  trace  of  frost  has  left  the  ground  and  air. 
The  ground  is  kept  cold  for  their  own  good. 

Since  plants  do  best  in  a  warm  soil,  and  one  that 
does  not  admit  of  too  sudden  changes  of  temper- 
ature, it  remains  with  the  farmer  to  regulate  the 
conditions  which  govern  them.  As  heat  is  taken 
from  the  soil .  in  evaporating  water  at  its  surface, 
it  should  be  left  in  such  a  condition  that  as  little 
evaporation  takes  place  as  possible.  Every  unit  of 
heat  spent  in  evaporating  water  leaves  the  s£>il  j-ust 


34  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

so  much  colder,  and  a   consequent    slower    plant 
growth  results.  - 

CHEMICAL   COMPOSITION   AND    KINDS    OF    SOIL. 

Geologists  inform  us  that  the  present  crust  of 
the  earth  has  been  a  long  time  in  the  process  of 
formation.  Early  rock-formations  have  been 
broken  up  and  decomposed  by  later  actions. 
Water,  cold,  heat,  and  glacial  movements  have 
been  the  great  causes  in  breaking  up  the  surface 
rocks  and  leaving  them  in  a  fit  condition  for  the 
growth  of  plants. 

Soil,  in  order  to  yield  its  ingredients  quickly  as 
food  for  plants,  must  have  its  grains  so  fine 
that  a  great  amount  of  surface  is  exposed  for  the 
combined  action  of  roots  and  water.  A  cubic  foot 
of  solid  stone  might  contain  all  the  necessary  food 
for  plant  growth,  yet  so  little  of  its  surface  is 
exposed  that  only  a  small  per  cent,  of  it  could  be 
dissolved  for  a  season's  growth.  By  a  very  simple 
mathematical  law,  it  can  easily  be  found  that  the 
same  cubic  foot  of  stone,  when  broken  into  small 
pieces,  will  present,  instead  of  six  square  feet  of 
surface,  several  hundred;  and,  if  reduced  to  parti- 
cles fine  enough,  such  as  that  of  most  soils,  several 
thousand  square  feet. 

This  not  only  allows  the  roots  to  penetrate  more 
easily,  but  the  surface  tension  of  the  particles  gives 
soil  a  greater  water-holding  capacity,  one  of  its 
most  valuable  properties,  The  fineness  and  coarse- 


THE  SOIL.  35 

ness,  then,  of  the  soil  grains  is  one  means  of 
determining  different  kinds  of  soils.  However, 
there  are  other  things  to  be  taken  into  considera- 
tion. 

Some  rocks,  such  as  granites,  are  so  hard  that, 
when  ground  to  pieces,  they  are  not  easily  reduced 
to  a  fine  powder,  but  remain  hard  and  sharp 
grains  of  considerable  size.  Such  are  sandy  soils. 
Sand  grains  are  not  only  comparatively  large,  but 
of  such  a  nature  that  they  are  not  readily  dissolved; 
hence,  they  give  up  their  food  very  slowly.  Other 
rocks,  such  as  limestone,  and  the  clays,  are  easily 
reduced  to  a  fine  powder,  forming  soils  of  very 
small  grains,  with  a  great  water-holding  capacity. 

Soils  are  called  sandy  when  a  large  per  cent,  of 
sand  enters  into  their  composition;  and  clay  soils,  if 
they  are  composed  largely  of  clay.  Where  sand 
and  clay  are  mixed,  it  gives  a  sandy  clay,  or  a  clayey 
sand  according  as  the  sand  or  the  clay  predominates. 

"Light"  and  "heavy"  soils  are  terms  applied  on  ac- 
count of  the  ease  or  difficulty  with  which  they  are 
worked,  and  not  on  account  of  weight.  A  sandy 
soil  weighs  more  per  cubic  foot  than  a  clay  soil,  but 
it  is  called  a  light  soil  on  account  of  its  loose  texture; 
and  a  clay  soil  heavy  on  account  of  its  stiffness. 

Humus  soils  are  those  composed  mostly  of  decay- 
ing organic  matter,  the  remains  of  plants  and  ani- 
mals. These  soils  predominate  in  regions  where 
organic  decomposition  goes  on  but  slowly.  The 
best  examples  of  humus  soils  are  peat  and  black 


36  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

muck.  These  soils  are  such  because  of  the  great 
amount  of  water  they  contain,  and  of  their  anti- 
septic nature,  shutting  out  those  organisms  which 
cause  decomposition.  They  become  very  pro- 
ductive when  drained,  as  this  allows  air  and  'decom- 
position germs  to  enter  them. 

It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  humus  soils 
are  the  most  unstable.  In  the  decay  of  the  organic 
matter  of  which  they  are  composed,  part  of  the 
products  go  back  to  the  earth  as  ash,  and  part  as 
gases  to  the  air  from  whence  they  came.  All 
organic  substances  remain  but  a  short  time  as  such, 
then  decompose  into  their  original  elements,  to  be 
again  taken  up  and  passed  through  the  cycle  of  life. 

ELEMENTS   COMPOSING   THE   SOIL. 

Each  rock  has  its  own  particular  composition, 
and  the  elements  composing  any  single  kind  are 
so  few  in  number  that  they  are  not  adequate  for 
the  many  demands  of  plants;  but  there  has  been 
such  thorough  grinding  and  mixing  in  the  processes 
of  soil-building  that  many  different  kinds  of  ele- 
ments have  been  brought  together  and  can  be 
found  in  almost  all  places.  The  elements  compos- 
ing the  soil  rarely  occur  in  a  free  state,  but  are 
usually  combined  with  other  elements  to  form  com- 
pounds. Some  of  the  most  important  elements 
are — oxygen,  hydrogen,  nitrogen,  sulphur,  silicon, 
phosphorus,  chlorine,  calcium,  aluminum,  iron, 
sodium,  magnesium,  and  manganese. 


THE  SOIL.  37 

Oxygen  occurs  in  the  soil  in  a  free  state,  and  also 
combined  with  nearly  all  of  the  other  elements. 
Combined  with  silicon  it  forms  quartz,  of  which 
sand  is  made  and  which  is  so  abundant  all  over  the 
earth.  Quartz  is  so  abundant  that  it  is  estimated 
to  compose  nearly  half  the  rocks  of  the  earth. 

Hydrogen  seldom,  or  never,  occurs  in  a  free 
state  in  the  soil;  but,  combined  with  oxygen,  forms 
the  familiar  compound  water,  which  is  absolutely 
essential  at  all  times,  and  serves  plant  growth  in 
many  ways. 

Nitrogen,  although  so  abundant  in  the  air,  occurs 
in  very  small  quantities  in  the  crust  of  the  earth. 
It  is  a  very  essential  soil  ingredient  when  combined. 
It  is  brought  and  fixed  in  the  soil  through  decay- 
ing organic  matter,  and  by  germs  on  the  roots  of 
plants  of  the  pea  family.  It  also  occurs  combined 
with  sodium  and  potassium  as  nitrates,  and  is  often 
applied  in  a  pure  state  to  the  ground  as  a  fertilizer. 
Nitrogen  has  very  little  attraction  for  the  other 
elements  and  compounds,  but  the  small  germs 
growing  on  the  roots  of  clover,  peas,  and  beans 
have  the  power  of  extracting  it  from  the  air  and 
fixing  it  as  a  compound  in  the  soil.  There  it  does 
a  vast  amount  of  good  in  replenishing  the  soil  with 
new  plant  food. 

Carbon  occurs  in  the  soil  mostly  as  a  part  of 
organic  matter.  It  exists  in  the  air  combined  with 
oxygen  as  the  well  known  gas,  carbon  dioxide. 
In  this  form  it  is  taken  up  by  the  leaves  of  plants, 


38  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

built  into  plant  tissue,  and  passed  on  to  animals. 
In  the  process  of  organic  decay,  carbon  again 
unites  with  oxygen  and  passes  back  to  the  air.  It 
also  occurs  as  carbonates  with  some  of  the  metals, 
such  as  calcium  and  magnesium. 

Iron  occurs  both  in  a  free  state  and  combined 
with  some  of  the  other  elements,  especially  oxygen 
and  sulphur.  It  is  found  widely  distributed 
through  all  soils  in  such  quantities  that  it  is  rarely 
necessary  to  apply  it  as  a  fertilizer.  It  does  not 
enter  to  any  great  extent  into  the  composition  of 
plant  tissue,  but  is  thought  by  ?ome  to  aid  in  the 
processes  of  growth. 

The  other  elements  are  found  in  the  earth  as 
compounds,  and  enter  into  plant  structure.  When 
they  are  lacking  to  any  great  extent  it  is  necessary 
to  supply  them  to  the  soil  in  some  form  o'r  other. 

RELATION  OF  SOME  SMALL  ANIMAL?  TO  THE  SOIL. 

Besides  giving  up  their  bodies  in  decay  to  add  to 
its  richness,  some  animals  do  not  a  little  in  improv- 
ing the  texture  of  the  soil,  and  making  it  more 
open  for  the  free  circulation  of  air  an«I  water. 
Such  animals  are  those  that  live  in  the  ground 
permanently,  or  those  that  burrow  into  it  foi  shel- 
ter. 

The  crayfish,  in  many  places,  has  the  habvt  of 
digging  deep  holes  in  the  ground,  and  bringing;  up 
the  earth  from  a  depth  of  several  feet.  This 
earth,  or  mud,  is  generally  built  into  a  sort  of 


THE  SOIL.  39 

tower  at  the  entrance  of  the  hole,  but  in  time  is 
knocked  over  and  becomes  mixed  with  the  upper 
layers.  Soil  thus  brought  to  the  surface  is  fresh 
and  productive,  and  takes  the  place  of  that  which 
has  become  exhausted. 

The  crayfish  holes,  too,  benefit  the  soil.  They 
permit  a  free  circulation  of  air  to  greater  depths 
than  would  otherwise  be  possible.  The  falling-in 
of  their  walls  produces  a  loose  column  of  earth 
down  which  the  roots  of  plants  easily  grow  for 
fresh  supplies  of  food  and  water. 

Ants  are  very  common  as  earth-mixing  animals. 
A  colony  of  ants  will  bring  to  the  surface  during  a 
single  season  enough  earth  to  form  a  mound  several 
inches  high,  and  two  or  three  feet  in  diameter; — 
in  many  cases,  they  make  much  larger  ones.  They 
carry  into  their  galleries  animal  and  vegetable 
matter  which  finally  decays  and  becomes  a  part  of 
the  soil. 

Some  rodents,  and  other  small  fur-bearing  ani- 
mals, dig  in  the  ground  not  a  little.  The  mole  lives 
in  the  ground  all  the  time,  and  its  entire  make-up 
is  well  suited  to  the  life  it  leads.  It  tunnels  the 
ground  in  every  direction,  making  it  loose  and 
open  for  the  free  circulation  of  air  and  water. 
Gophers,  mice,  prairie  dogs,  and  many  such  ani- 
mals dig  in  the  ground  more  or  less  and  do  valu- 
able work  in  stirring  the  soil. 

The  most  valuable  of  all  animals  in  soil-making 
is  the  common  earthworm,  or  angleworm.  It  is  a 


40 


LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


small  creature,  but  such  countless  numbers  are  con- 
stantly at  work,  when  the  soil  is  moist  enough  and 
warm  enough,  that  the  amount  of  fresh  soil  brought 
to  the  surface  by  them  annually  is  enormous.  The 
earthworm  burrows  through  the  soil  for  the  organic 
matter  which  it  is  able  to  get  from  it.  In  order  to 
get  the  food  from  the  soil,  it  takes  the  soil  into  its 
stomach.  This  process  not  only  grinds  the  soil 
into  finer  pieces,  but  increases  its  richness. 

Bringing  to  the  surface  an  amount  of  soil  that 
can  be  easily  measured,  it  has  been  definitely 
proved  that  the  earthworm  completely  mixes  and 
re-mixes  the  soil  in  a  definite  number  of  years.  It 
can  truly  be  said  that  this  little  animal  is  one  of 
the  farmer's  best  friends. 


CHAPTER  II. 
PLANTS. 

Plants  have  life  and  motion.  Their  struggle  for  existence.  Their 
structure.  How  complex  plants  develop.  Organs  and  func- 
tions. Why  plants  have  so  many  roots  and  leaves.  Structure 
and  function  of  leaves.  How  a  leaf  works.  Arrangement  and 
shapes  of  leaves.  The  storing  of  food  in  plants.  Importance  of 
perfect  seeds.  Individual  plants — Indian  corn,  potatoes,  peas, 
and  beans. 

Under  the  study  of  soil  it  was  found  that,  during 
long  ages,  the  earth  has  produced  a  layer  of 
decayed  and  ground-up  rock,  varying  in  thickness 
from  a  few  inches  to  several  feet.  This  soil  covers 
the  face  of  the  land  and  is  the  natural  home  of 
most  plants. 

Some  of  the  first  and  simplest  forms  of  plants 
have  always  lived  in  water.  They  adopted  this 
mode  of  living  when  the  earth  was  new  and  before 
any  soil  was  formed.  Their  food  is  dissolved  in 
the  water  in  which  they  live.  In  this  manner  of 
living,  they  simply  float  upon  the  water,  a  part  of 
the  plant  being  below  the  surface  and  a  part  of  it 
above.  Such  plants  as  seaweeds  of  the  oceans, 
and  the  small  duck-weeds  of  our  ponds  have  all 
the  conditions  necessary  for  plant  growth  and 
development.  They  have  earthy  material  dis- 

41 


42  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

solved  in  the  water,  and  free  air  and  light  above. 

The  largest  and  most  beautiful  kinds  of  plants, 
however,  cannot  grow  in  this  way  because  of  the 
liquid  and  unstable  condition  of  water.  Water 
plants  cannot  raise  their  trunks  and  branches  into 
the  air,  as  oaks  and  cedars  do,  because  they  have 
no  solid  support  for  their  roots.  All  they  can  do 
is  to  lie  flat  upon  the  water  and  float. 

The  soil,  then,  is  a  more  ideal  home  for  plants 
than  water  is.  In  it  they  find  food,  and  a  firm 
anchorage  for  their  roots,  enabling  them  to  raise 
their  trunks  high  in  the  air,  and  spread  their 
branches,  making  forms  of  symmetry  and  beauty. 
It  is  true  that  plants  cannot  move  much  when 
rooted  to  one  spot,  but  food  and  drink  come  to 
them  in  ample  quantities.  Other  conditions  are 
such  that  they  are  able  to  grow  into  larger  forms. 

PLANTS    HAVE   LIFE   AND   MOTION. 

Plants  are  to  be  thought  of  as  living  beings. 
They  are  just  as  much  alive  as  animals,  but,  being 
of  different  structure,  they  manifest  life  in  a  differ- 
ent way. 

Though  rooted  to  one  spot,  in  most  cases,  yet 
plants  do  move.  They  not  only  move  in  the  space 
in  which  they  grow  for  a  season,  or  number  of 
seasons,  but  move  from  place  to  place.  They  do 
so  for  new  food — much  the  same  as  animals  do. 
Every  breeze  causes  a  part,  or  the  whole,  of  a  plant 
to  move.  Its  leaves,  branches,  and  stem  are  not 


PLANTS.  43 

aimlessly  fluttering,  swaying,  and  bending,  but  are 
changing  their  positions  to  get  as  much  air  and 
light  as  possible.  Some  plants,  such  as  sunflow- 
ers and  field  peas,  are  great  lovers  of  light. 
They  bend  the  upper  parts  of  their  bodies  toward 
the  sun,  and  follow  it  in  its  daily  course.  They  do 
this  so  that  their  leaves  and  blossoms  may  get  a 
large  amount  of  light  and  heat.  Others,  such  as 
poplar  trees,  are  so  made  that  their  leaves  flutter 
in  the  slightest  breeze,  thus  presenting  first  one 
side  then  the  other,  to  the  air  and  light.  Such 
plants  do  not  have  as  many  leaves  as  those  that 
have  less  movement.  Each  leaf  does  a  large 
amount  of  work,  hence  there  is  a  saving  in  the 
amount  of  exposed  surface. 

Besides  movement  in  one  place,-  plants — such  as 
ferns,  Solomon's  seal,  blood-root,  and  many  others, 
move  slowly  from  place  to  place.  They  do  so  by 
means  of  their  underground  stems.  Such  stems 
grow  horizontally  in  the  ground  in  the  direction  of 
the  most  plentiful  supply  of  food.  At  one  end  of 
the  underground  stem  is  a  large  bud.  This  bud,  in 
growing,  pushes  continually  forward,  while  the 
opposite  end  gradually  dies  away.  All  along  the 
stem  are  lateral  buds.  These  yearly  send  up 
branches  or  leaves  for  the  necessary  supply  of  air 
and  light,  and  the  production  of  seeds.  Such 
plants  are  perennials,  and  live  the  longest;  in  fact, 
they  practically  never  die,  except  in  cases  in  which 
the  underground  stem  is  destroyed.  They  simply 


44  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

grow  forward  year  after  year,  constantly  adding 
new  growth  at  one  end  and  dying  at  the  other. 

Such  perennial  underground  stems  can  be  found 
fresh  and  alive  in  the  ground  during  winter.  They 
afford  excellent  means  for  plant  study  during  that 
season  of  the  year  when  the  whole  face  of  the 
earth  seems  to  be  swept  clear  of  all  traces  of  life. 
A  little  digging  in  the  earth  in  the  right  places, 
even  when  the  ground  is  frozen  solid,  will  reveal 
surprises  of  fresh  and  expanding  buds  of  rare 
beauty  and  the  richest  colors.  They  can  be  placed 
in  jars  of  earth  in  the  house  during  the  latter  part 
of  winter,  when  new  growth  will  take  place  long 
before  any  signs  appear  out  of  doors. 

Then,  too,  plants,  or  rather  their  children,  move 
from  place  to  place  by  means  of  the  many  devices 
for  scattering  seeds.  Plants  must  not  only  provide 
for  their  own  life  and  growth,  but  also  for  their  chil- 
dren. Seeds  produced  by  a  plant  do  not  fall  upon 
the  ground  where  the  parent  plant  stood,  but  are 
carried  to  new  places.  The  soil  which  supplied  the 
parent  plant,  especially  if  it  be  a  plant  which  lives 
for  many  years,'  such  as  an  oak  or  maple,  has  all  it 
can  do  to  supply  nourishment  for  itself.  The  young 
seeds  are  sent  away  to  new  and  unoccupied  fields. 

THE    STRUGGLE    OF    PLANTS    FOR    EXISTENCE. 

Plants  have  to  struggle  for  life  just  as  man  and 
other  animals  do.  It  is  a  well-known  fact  that  plants 
usually  crowd  one  another.  Thus  none  are  as 


PLANTS. 


45 


large  and  perfect  as  they  otherwise  would  be.  In 
many  cases,  some  are  forced  out  of  the  race  entirely 
and  cease  to  be.  The  strongest  and  first  in  the 
field  always  win.  This  is  one  of  the  main  prin- 
ciples in  agriculture,  one  class  of  plants  being  given 
possession  of  the  soil  to  the  exclusion  of  others. 
Corn,  potatoes,  and  like  crops  are  plowed  and  cul- 


RED   CLOVER,    TIMOTHY,    OATS,    ANt>   WHEAT. 

tivated  after  the  plants  start  to  grow,  so  that  other 
plants  cannot  crowd  in  to  take  away  a  part  of  the 
light  and  food.  In  other  words,  cultivated  plants 
do  not  have  to  use  part  of  their  strength  in  strug- 
gling with  enemies.  They  are  enabled  to  use  all.  of 
it  in  growing  larger  and  more  perfect. 


i6  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

Those  of  the  same  kind,  too,  struggle  with  each 
other.  Each  plant  requires  a  certain  amount  of 
space  and  food  for  its  complete  development. 
When  there  are  so  many  growing  together  that  the 
space  for  each  is  very  small,  none  grow  to  much 


AUTUMN    CORN   FIELD. 


size.  The  fruiting  in  such  cases  is  imperfect  or 
altogether  wanting.  Corn  planted  a  few  feet 
apart,  and  two  or  three  stalks  together,  will  grow 
from  seven  to  twelve  feet  high,  producing  large  and 


PLANTS.  47 

well-developed  ears.  When  it  is  sowed  as  thick  as 
wheat  or  oats,  although  no  other  plants  grow  with  it, 
it  will  attain  a  height  of  but  three  or  four  feet,  with 
but  the  indication  of  ears  and  no  seeds  at  all  on 
them. 

Plants  require  space  in  proportion  to  the  size  of 
the  full-grown  individuals.  Large  plants  require 
much  space,  and  small  plants  require  little  space. 
Thus  clover,  timothy  and  field  peas  are  planted 
but  a  few  inches  apart  because  the  full-grown 
plants  are  small  and  require  little  food  and  light. 
These  plants,  too,  when  started  to  grow  in  soil  in 
wfiich  all  weeds  have  previously  been  destroyed, 
so  take  possession  that  no  weeds  are  allowed  to 
grow.  The  reason  for  this  is  that  most  of  the  air 
and  light  are  shut  out.  As  soon  as  the  ripened 
crop  is  removed,  thousands  of  weeds  spring  up, 
showing  that  the  seeds  were  there  waiting  for  an 
opportunity  to  germinate. 

Plants  cannot  be  considered  as  having  the  power 
to  reason,  yet  they  spend  no  energy  in  germinating 
when  the  conditions  are  such  that  growth  would  be 
impossible.  They  behave  in  many  other  ways  just 
as  wonderful  as  this. 

STRUCTURE   OF   PLANTS. 

Like  animals,  plants  are  either  simple  or  complex 
in  structure.  A  simple  organism  is  one  in  which 
the  life  processes  are  carried  on  in  a  single  cell,  or 
a  few  united  cells.  A  good  example  of  a  cell  is  the 


48 


LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


egg  of  a  bird  or  of  an  insect.  Some  of  the  simplest 
plants  resemble  very  much  the  soft  egg  of  an 
insect.  All  the  life-activities  are  carried  on  by  the 


HAY  CUTTING  AND  STACKING. 


whole  mass.  They  have  no  special  organs,  such  as 
roots  for  drinking  and  leaves  for  breathing.  The 
single  cell  is  roots,  leaves,  stem,  and  branches  all 
in  one.  Any  and  all  parts  of  the  plant  body  eat, 


PLANTS.  49 

drink,  and  digest  at  the  same  time.  No  one  part 
seems  to  be  different  from  or  better  than  another. 

With  plants  of  a  more  complex  nature,  there  are 
special  organs  for  the  production  of  seeds,  and  from 
these  new  plants  grow.  Simple  plants  are  pro- 
duced by  the  simple  cell  dividing  into  two  parts. 
Each  part  becomes  a  perfect  plant  and  looks  just 
like  the  parent  cell.  By  and  by  these  two  divide  in 
the  same  manner,  giving  rise  to  four  plants. 
These  four  again  divide,  giving  rise  to  eight  plants, 
and  so  on.  An  infinite  number  might  thus  come 
into  existence  were  it  not  for  the  fact  that  many 
are  destroyed,  and  many  more  die  from  the  lack 
of  food  and  other  things  necessary  for  such  a  life. 

Most  of  the  very  simple  plants  live  either  in 
water,  or  on  substances  where  a  great  deal  of 
water  is  present.  If  from  any  cause  the  moisture 
disappears,  the  plants  cease  to  grow;  but  most  of 
them  have  the  power  of  reviving  on  the  return  of 
the  supply  of  moisture. 

HOW    COMPLEX    PLANTS    DEVELOP. 

Complex  organisms  are  those  that  have  special 
organs  set  apart  for  special  purposes.  Thus, 
instead  of  drinking  in  water  all  over  their  surfaces, 
as  the  simple  plants  do,  complex  plants  have  roots, 
by  means  of  which  they  drink.  These  roots  are 
especially  fitted  to  do  that  work,  and  they  do  it 
well  because  they  have  few  other  burdens  imposed 
upon  them.  Instead  of  breathing  with  the  whole 


50  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

body,  higher  plants  have  organs  especially  fitted 
for  that  work.  And,  instead  of  dividing  and  break- 
ing to  pieces  in  order  to  produce  new  plants,  those 
of  complex  structure  have  special  organs  for  the 
production  of  seeds.  These  seeds  germinate  and 
become  new  plants  without  any  disturbance  to  the 
parent  plant. 

Complex  plants  might  be  compared  to  a  civilized 
community.  There  each  person  does  some  partic- 
ular thing  instead  of  everything  necessary  to  life. 
The  baker  can  bake  good  bread  because  he  has  all 
his  time  and  strength  for  that  one  thing,  and  the 
tailor  can  make  good  clothes  for  the  same  reason. 
The  same  is  true  of  the  higher  plants.  Leaves  can 
breathe  well  for  the  plant  because  they  give  all 
their  time  and  strength  to  that  one  office. 

Simple  plants  can  be  compared  to  a  savage  com- 
munity where  every  man  is  everything — carpenter, 
tailor,  shoemaker,  butcher.  Nothing  in  such  a 
community  is  done  well  because  there  are  so  many 
different  things  for  each  man  to  do.  Because  of 
this  division  of  labor,  complex  plants  are  usually 
the  largest  and  finest  types. 

Cells  form  tissue,  and  tissue  forms  organs.  One 
of  the  main  differences,  then,  between  a  very  sim- 
ple plant  and  a  complex  one,  is  that  the  simple 
plant  consists  of  a  single  cell,  and  the  complex  plant 
consists  of  a  very  great  number  of  cells  constructed 
into  tissue,  and  the  tissue  constructed  into  organs. 

Plant  cells  can  easily  be  seen  with  a  low-power 


PLANTS. 


51 


microscope  in  the  thin,  transparent  tissue  peeled 
from  an  onion.  Cells  large  enough  to  be  seen  with 
the  naked  eye  can  be  separated  from  the  pulp  of 
an  orange. 

ORGANS  AND  FUNCTIONS — ROOTS. 

Plants  drink  with  their  roots.     All  living  things 
require  water,  and  plants  are  no  exception  to  this 


HAY    STACKS. 


rule.  In  fact,  plants  require  more  water  for  growth 
than  animals  do.  The  roots  of  a  plant  not  only 
drink  for  it,  but  they  hold  it  fixed  to  one  spot,  so 
that  it  may  grow  up  into  abundance  of  air  and 
light.  They  keep  its  position  against  the  wind  and 
other  things  that  tend  to  destroy  it. 

One  part  of  a  plant  has  a  natural  inclination  for 
light,  hence,  it  grows  upward.  The  other  part  has 
an  inclination  for  the  soil  and  darkness;  hence,  it 
downward.  Roots  grow  in  all  direction?  in 


52  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

the  soil,  which  is  the  great  storehouse  for  water 
supply.  It  was  formerly  thought  that  plants  drink 
in  water  with  their  leaves,  but  it  has  lately  been 
proved  that  this  is  not  the  case.  Plants  will  grow 
and  mature  without  any  water  touching  their 
leaves.  This  is  so  in  dry  regions,  where  irrigation 
is  used  to  supply  water.  In  irrigation  the  ground 
is  flooded  a  few  inches  deep  at  stated  times  so  that 
the  roots  are  supplied  with  water.  None  touches 
the  leaves  or  blossoms.  Abundant  crops  are  har- 
vested without  the  fall  of  a  single  rain  upon  the 
leaves  of  the  plants.  Similar  methods  are  used  in 
the  growing  of  potted  plants. 

Roots  penetrate  the  soil,  pushing  their  sensitive 
tips  among  rocks,  pebbles,  and  soil  grains.  The 
growing  end  of  the  root  is  the  part  that  does  the 
most  drinking.  The  older  part  carries  the  water  to 
the  main  body  of  the  plant,  which  circulates  it  as 
sap.  The  sensitive  ends  of  the  roots  are  covered 
with  fine  hairs  which  grow  out  in  every  direction, 
taking  up  all  food  within  their  reach.  They  have 
great  power  of  attracting  water  to  themselves  on 
account  of  their  small  size.  The  smaller  the  size 
of  an  object,  the  greater  in  proportion  to  its  mass 
is  its  power  of  surface  tension  for  the  attraction  of 
water.  The  little  hair-like  roots  are  constantly 
dying.  New  ones  immediately  grow  out  to  take 
their  places,  so  that  all  the  small  spaces  in  the  soil 
are  visited  in  their  search. 

Plants    get   far    more    substance   from   the    air 


PLANTS.  53 

through  their  leaves  than  they  do  from  the  ground 
through  their  roots.  The  substances  taken  up  by 
the  roots  are  very  essential,  though  small  in  amount. 
Water  in  the  soil  contains  dissolved  substances 
which  are  taken  up  and  used  by  plants.  They 
have  the  power  of  selection,  to  a  certain  extent,  and 
exclude  some  things  which  are  not  conducive  to 
growth.  Some  things,  however,  are  taken  into  the 
plant  structure  by  the  roots  which  either  retard 
growth  or  cause  the  plant  to  die.  Common  salt, 
for  instance,  when  dissolved  in  water  will  kill  most 
plants  very  quickly.  It  can  be  seen  from  this  that 
right  kinds  of  food  should  be  in  the  soil,  and  that 
injurious  substances  should  not  be,  if  strong  and 
vigorous  plants  are  to  be  grown.  Certain  elements 
are  necessary  for  the  growth  and  development  of 
a  plant.  If  they  cannot  be  secured,  the  plant  will 
die. 

WHY  PLANTS  HAVE  SO  MANY  ROOTS  AND  LEAVES. 

All  plant  food  must  be  dissolved  in  water  before 
it  can  be  taken  up  by  the  roots.  They  have  not 
the  power  of  eating  solid  food  as  animals  have. 
Instead  of  one  large  mouth,  they  have  thousands  of 
small  mouths.  These  mouths  are  so  small  that 
they  cannot  be  seen  with  the  naked  eye,  hence 
solid  food  cannot  enter  them.  Then,  too,  the  food 
in  passing  up  the  stem  and  out  to  the  leaves 
through  the  branches  does  not  flow  through  a 
large  tube  like  the  digestive  tract  of  an  animal.  It 


54  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

must  pass  through  very  fine,  hair-like  tubes,  and 
among  closely  packed  cells;  hence,  it  could  not 
possibly  penetrate  except  in  a  dissolved  condition. 

This  is  the  reason  that  plants  have  so  many  roots 
and  leaves.  The  many  small  mouths  make  up  a 
sum  equal  to  one  large  one.  An  animal  has  one 
mouth,  which  serves  the  double  purpose  of  eating 
and  drinking.  A  plant  has  thousands  of  little 
mouths  for  eating,  and  thousands  of  still  a  differ- 
ent kind  for  drinking.  A  plant  may  have  a  dozen 
of  its  mouths  completely  destroyed,  and  still  have 
enough  left  to  eat  and  drink  with.  It  is  quite 
necessary  for  them  to  have  so  many  mouths. 
They  cannot  move  about,  and  the  food  in  both  air 
and  soil  is  so  widely  scattered,  and  in  such  small 
quantities  in  any  one  place,  that  they  could  not 
gather  in  a  sufficient  supply  if  they  were  not  thus 
provided. 

The  roots  of  plants  are  great  lovers  of  water. 
Since  it  is  their  office  to  supply  the  plant  with  this 
necessary  liquid,  and  in  large  quantities,  too,  they 
seem  to  know  where  it  is,  and  grow  in  that  direc- 
tion. There  is  always  water  in  some  place  in  the 
ground.  This  is  proved  from  wells  in  which  water 
stands  at  various  levels  during  the  entire  year. 
Besides,  there  is  water  held  everywhere  by  the  sur- 
face tension  of  soil  grains.  It  never  escapes,  except 
by  evaporation  at  the  surface,  and  when  it  is  taken 
up  by  the  roots  of  plants.  Plants,  trees  especially, 
growing  near  wells,  sometimes  almost  fill  up  the 


PLANTS.  55 

cavity  by  their  roots  extending  in  search  of  water. 
They  not  infrequently  grow  downward  forty  or 
fifty  feet  after  penetrating  the  walls  of  a  well. 

LEAVES — STRUCTURE  AND  FUNCTION. 

If  it  can  be  said  that  one  part  of  a  plant  is  more 
useful  than  another,  then  the  most  important  part 
is  the  leaves.  They  grow  upward  and  outward 
into  the  air  and  light.  They  spread  their  flat 
bodies  into  numberless  shapes,  and  the  most  beau- 
tiful forms.  The  leaves  of  most  plants  are  very 
thin,  compared  with  their  other  dimensions.  It  is 
necessary  that  they  should  be,  since  their  function 
is  to  gather  air  and  light,  and  to  evaporate  water. 
During  normal  growth,  there  is  a  great  deal  of 
water  evaporated.  Since  the  amount  depends 
upon  the  quantity  in  the  soil  which  can  be  absorbed 
by  the  roots  and  sent  up  to  the  leaves,  plants  in 
very  dry  regions  have  very  thick,  fleshy  leaves, 
which  expose  less  surface  compared  with  the  bulk 
of  the  plant.  Such,  for  instance,  are  the  cacti, 
whose  native  home  is  the  dry,  arid  region  of  west 
central  United  States. 

Some  forms  of  the  cactus  plant  have  no  true 
'leaves  at  all.  The  large,  green,  fleshy  stalk  per- 
forms the  functions  of  both  leaves  and  stem,  and 
acts  also  as  a  water  reservoir  from  one  rainy  season 
to  another.  If  these  plants  had  thin  and  highly 
divided  leaves,  so  much  surface  would  be  exposed 
that  evaporation  would  carry  away  the  water  too 


56  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

quickly,  leaving  them  to  wither  and  die.  Hence, 
plants  in  different  climates  and  locations  so  shape 
their  leaves  as  best  to  fit  them  for  life  and  growth 
under  the  imposed  conditions. 

That  leaves  do  evaporate  water  may  be  verified 
by  placing  a  glass  jar  over  growing  leaves.  Drops 
of  water  can  soon  be  seen  collecting  on  the  inside 
of  the  vessel.  One  who  has  never  looked  into  the 
matter  will  be  surprised  at  the  very  great  amount 
of  water  evaporated  by  a  single  leaf  during  a  day 
of  active  life  under  good  growing  conditions.  The 
reason  that  the  amount  of  water  evaporated  by 
leaves  of  plants  is  not  appreciated,  is  because  it 
passes  into  the  air  in  the  form  of  an  invisible 
vapor.  Knowing,  however,  that  a  small  potted 
house  plant,  with  only  a  few  leaves,  easily  drinks  a 
pint  of  water  each  day,  it  will  be  readily  perceived 
that,  in  proportion,  many  hundreds  of  pints  must  be 
drunk  up  and  given  off  by  the  thousands  of  leaves 
of  some  of  the  larger  plants,  such  as  trees.  Since 
the  leaves  of  plants  require  so  much  water  for 
evaporation,  it  is  quite  essential  to  cultivate  the 
soil  so  as  to  keep  as  much  water  as  possible  in  store 
for  them  during  the  growing  season. 

HOW   LEAVES    DECOMPOSE   AND    REBUILD. 

It  has  been  mentioned  that  water  drunk  in  by 
the  roots  of  plants  and  sent  to  the  leaves,  takes 
certain  earthy  material  in  solution  with  it  to  be 
built  into  the  structure  of  the  plant.  Water  has 


58  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

other  parts  also  to  play,  and  the  leaf  is  the  organ 
in  which  the  wonderful  work  goes  on.  Water 
consists  of  hydrogen  and  oxygen  strongly  bound 
together.  The  leaf  has  the  power  of  breaking 
them  apart,  and  combining  them  with  carbon  to 
form  starch,  sugar,  fat,  and  other  substances  com- 
posed of  these  three  elements — carbon,  hydrogen 
and  oxygen.1  The  carbon  is  obtained  from  the 
carbonic  acid  gas  of  the  air.  Carbonic  acid  gas  is 
composed  of  carbon  and  oxygen.  Only  a  fraction 
of  one  per  cent,  of  the  atmosphere  consists  of  car- 
bonic acid  gas,  yet  there  is  always  some  floating 
everywhere,  and  the  leaves  struggle  hard  to  get 
every  molecule  that  passes. 

There  is  in  every  living  leaf  an  active,  green  sub- 
stance called  chlorophyl.  It  has  the  power,  under 
the  influence  of  sunlight,  to  break-up  water  and 
carbonic  acid  gas  and  form  them  into  starch. 
The  starch  is  changed  into  similar  compounds  with 
a  different  proportion  of  the  atoms  of  carbon, 
hydrogen,  and  oxygen.  The  leaf,  then,  is  the  fac- 
tory in  which  organic  material  is  made;  chlorophyl 
is  the  machinery,  and  sunlight  is  the  motive  power 
that  does  the  work.  Organic  compounds — or  the 
compounds  of  carbon — can  always  be  recognized 
from  the  fact  that,  on  being  heated  sufficiently,  a 
black,  charred  mass  remains.  The  charred  mass  is 
carbon  taken  from  the  atmosphere  by  the  growing 

'The  formula  for  starch  is  CeH10O5,  and  for  sugar  C12H22O1,. 


PLANTS.  59 

plant  in  the  form  of  a  gaseous  compound.  When, 
however,  charcoal  is  raised  to  the  kindling  point,  it 
burns,  or  oxidizes,  and  returns  again  to  the  atmos- 
phere whence  it  came. 

Besides  starchy  substances,  leaves  build  up 
another  substance  called  albumen.  It  contains  not 
only  carbon,  hydrogen,  and  oxygen,  but  an  addi- 
tional element — nitrogen.  The  nitrogen  is  not 
taken  from  the  air  directly,  but  is  brought  up 
from  the  earth  by  the  roots  as  a  nitrate  dissolved 
/n  water.  There  is  far  more  nitrogen  than  any 
other  substance  in  the  air,  yet  leaves  do  not  have 
the  power  of  absorbing  it.  Nitrogen  is  very 
essential  in  the  formation  of  albuminous  sub- 
stances, so  that  soils  poor  in  its  compounds  yield 
very  light  crops  of  certain  kinds  of  plants.  Some 
plants — the  seeds  especially — are  richer  in  albumen 
than  others,  and  of  course  require  more  nitrogen  in 
the  soil.  The  sticky  part  of  wheat  flour  is  albu- 
men, and  there  is  a  larger  proportion  of  it  in  the 
grains  of  wheat  than  in  Indian  corn.  Hence  a 
good  wheat-growing  soil  must  necessarily  be  differ- 
ent in  composition  from  soil  in  which  corn  is  best 
grown.  Wheat  grows  well  in  soil  where  clover  was 
grown  the  previous  season.  The  roots  of  clover 
have  the  especial  power  of  extracting  free  nitrogen 
from  the  air  and  fixing  it  as  nitrates  in  the  soil, 
whence  the  wheat  plants  take  it  up  and  build  it  into 
albumen  of  the  seeds. 


60  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


HOW    A   LEAF   WORKS. 

There  is  busy  work,  and  there  are  complex 
changes  going  on  in  leaves  during  the  day  while 
the  sun  shines.  As  soon  as  compounds  are  formed 
in  the  leaves,  they  are  carried  away  by  the  circula- 
tion of  the  sap  to  all  parts  of  the  plant,  to  be  built 
into  tissue.  Starch  is  not  soluble,  but  sugar  is;  so 
the  starch  is  transformed  into  sugar  and  carried  by 
the  sap  to  the  places  where  most  needed,  and  there 
changed  back  again  to  starch,  cellulose,  fat,  gum, 
or  some  other  similar  compound.  At  night,  of 
course,  when  there  is  no  light,  starch-building 
ceases,  and  the  leaves  stop  taking  in  carbonic  acid 
gas;  but,  as  with  animals,  vital  activity  never 
entirely  ceases  so  long  as  there  is  any  life.  During 
the  night  rest  of  plants  there  is  a  process,  though 
less  active,  going  on  in  the  leaves  similar  to  the 
breathing  of  animals,  In  which  oxygen  is  taken  in 
and  carbonic  acid  gas  given  off. 

It  may  be  well  to  add  here  that  there  can  be  no 
life  without  a  peculiar  substance  called  protoplasm. 
It  is  called  by  some  "  the  physical  basis  of  life." 
Protoplasm  is  a  watery,  transparent,  jelly-like  sub- 
stance, very  plastic,  and  always  in  motion.  It  is 
composed  of  carbon,  hydrogen,  oxygen,  nitrogen, 
and  sulphur.  It  is  the  basis  of  animal  life  as  well 
as  of  plant  life.  Plants  build  organic  substances 
out  of  inorganic  material,  while  animals  consume 
or  destroy  such  substances.  From  this  it  is  very 


PLANTS.  61 

evident  that  plants  appeared  first  upon  the  earth, 
and  animals  afterwards.  Animals  cannot  exist 
without  previous  plant  life.  It  is  true  that  some 
animals  eat  nothing  but  flesh,  or  other  animals; 
but  all  animal  life  would  soon  disappear  from  the 
face  of  the  earth  if  there  were  no  plants  from 
which  they  could  get  the  organic  material. 

The  leaves  of  plants  get  most  of  the  material  for 
plant  structure  from  the  atmosphere,  and  only  a 
small  amount  from  the  soil.  It  would  appear, 
then,  that  the  farmer  need  care  little  about  the  soil 
in  which  plants  are  grown;  but  the  substances  in 
the  soil  are  absolutely  necessary.  Besides,  the  soil 
costs  money,  while  the  air  is  free  to  all.  In  the 
burning  of  a  stove  two  things  are  necessary — fuel, 
and  oxygen  of  the  air.  The  fuel  costs  money, 
but  the  oxygen  comes  floating  in  without  price. 
Nearly  twice  as  much  oxygen  as  fuel  is  used  in  the 
act  of  combustion.  If  it  had  to  be  paid  for  at  the 
same  rate  as  fuel,  modern  house  heating  would  be 
very  expensive.  It  is  likewise  true  of  ourselves, 
and  the  animals  we  raise — the  food  costs  labor  and 
money,  but  the  large  amount  of  oxygen  costs  noth- 
ing. So  it  is  with  plants — carbonic  acid  gas  comes 
free,  but  land  is  scarce  and  high-priced.  Besides, 
the  air  can  never  be  exhausted  of  its  supply,  for  all 
burning  and  decay  constantly  return  enormous 
quantities  of  this  gas  to  the  atmosphere,  to  be  used 
over  and  over  again. 


62  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


ARRANGEMENT  AND    SHAPES    OF   LEAVES. 

Leaves  are  arranged  in  various  ways  on  the 
plant.  Whatever  the  mode  may  be,  it  is  always 
the  best  way  of  getting  the  greatest  supply 
of  air  and  light.  Some  are  arranged  in  circles 
around  the  stem,  the  largest  being  at  the  bottom, 
and  the  others  growing  smaller  toward  the  top. 
This  arrangement  is  similar  to  that  of  the  petals  of 
the  rose,  and  for  that  reason  is  called  the  rosette 
type.  The  mullein,  garden  cabbage,  and  bell- 
flower  are  good  examples  of  this  type.  With  such 
plants  the  lowest  leaves  are  not  only  the  largest, 
but  their  leaf  stalks  are  the  longest,  pushing  out  so 
as  not  to  be  shaded  by  the  ones  above.  Instead  of 
growing  out  directly  beneath  the  ones  above,  they 
grow  between  them,  thus  securing  a  position  where 
nearly  all  of  the  leaf  is  in  full  light. 

Another  type  of  leaf  arrangement  similar  to  the 
rosette  is  that  of  many  climbing  vines,  the  redbud 
of  the  pea  family,  and  many  other  plants.  In  this 
type  the  leaves  are  placed  very  much  the  same  as 
the  shingles  on  the  roof  of  a  house.  WThen  the 
plant  is  in  full  foliage,  they  will  actually  shed  water 
during  a  light  shower.  This  arrangement  is  such 
that  the  spaces  between  the  upper  leaves  let  light 
fall  upon  the  leaves  below.  It  is  thought  by  some 
that  this  habit,  together  with  that  of  all  kinds  of 
plants  whose  leaves  slope  outward  and  downward, 
is  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  the  water  of  rains 


PLANTS.  63 

away  from  the  central  part  of  the  plant  to  the  outer 
ends  of  the  roots.  In  the  rosette  type,  most  of  the 
water  is  directed  down  the  central  stem.  The 
leaves  of  a  great  many  plants  slope  inward  and 
downward,  directing  the  water  falling  upon  them 
to  the  central  stem  and  roots.  Indian  corn  and 
cabbage  are  good  examples  of  this  kind. 

Nature  always  fits  a  plant  to  meet  the  conditions 
of  its  surroundings;  so,  it  must  be  that  some  plants 
need  most  water  for  the  central  roots,  and  others 
need  it  for  the  outer  ones. 

Looking  up  into  almost  any  tree,  one  will  find 
few  leaves  around  the  central  stem  and  branches, 
but  very  many  on  the  outer  twigs.  The  reason  for 
this  is  the  same  as  in  the  other  cases  given — the 
struggle  for  light  and  air.  If  many  leaves  were  to 
grow  within  the  circle  of  the  outer  ones,  so  much 
light  would  be  shut  out  that  but  little  work  could 
be  done  by  them.  This  mode  of  leaf  position 
is  particularly  noticeable  in  the  elm,  the  leaves 
of  this  tree  not  only  being  on  the  outermost 
twigs,  but  the  greatest  number  on  the  topmost 
branches,  giving  that  tree  its  decidedly  character- 
istic shape. 

THE   NUMBER   AND    PARTS    OF   LEAVES. 

Another  feature  of  leaves  which  might  be  classed 
under  arrangement  is  that  of  numbers.  Each  plant 
requires  a  certain  amount  of  work  to  be  done  for 
its  development,  and  it  takes  a  certain  amount 


LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


LEAVES    AND    BLOSSOMS. 


of  exposed   leaf-surface  to 
gather  in  the  necessary  en- 
ergy.    So  a  plant  produces 
few  or  many  leaves,  accord- 
ing to  the  size  of  the  leaves. 
If   the   leaves  are  small,  a 
greater    number     are     re- 
quired;   if  they   are   large, 
few  are  nec- 
essary.   The 
willow    pro- 
d  u  c  e  s      a 
great    many 
small  leaves, 
while    the 
squash   vine 
supports 
only    a    few 
very  large 
ones.  But, 
in  each  case, 
the  leaf  sur- 
face is  com- 
mensurate 
with  the  size 
of  the  plant, 
o     Leaves  as- 
sume almost 
an  endless 
variety   of 


PLANTS.  65 

shapes,  but  each  shape,  no  doubt,  is  for  some  defi- 
nite purpose.  A  leaf  may  have  three  parts — blade, 
leafstalk,  and  stipules.  The  stipules  are  small  leaf- 
like  appendages  at  the  base  of  the  leafstalk.  In 
a  great  many  cases  there  are  no  stipules,  the 
leaf  consisting  of  blade  and  petiole  only.  In  a 
great  many  more  cases,  the  petiole  and  stipules  are 
both  wanting,  the  leaf  consisting  of  blade  only. 
The  blade  is  the  essential  part  of  the  leaf,  and 
where  the  leafstalk  is  wanting,  the  blade  is  attached 
directly  to  the  stem  at  one  end,  or,  sometimes, 
the  stem  goes  right  through  it,  either  at  the 
center  or  at  some  other  point.  The  petiole  is  a 
device  for  carrying  the  leaf  into  free  air  and  light, 
so  its  length  varies  according  to  circumstances. 
Some  leaves  turn  very  easily  upon  their  petioles, 
fluttering  with  the  slightest  breeze,  and  thus  secure 
every  stray  molecule,  of  passing  carbonic  acid  gas. 

Leaf  blades  are  either  entire,  or  divided  into 
parts.  A  leaf  that  is  smooth  around  its  edge  is 
called  a  simple  leaf.  With  some  leaves,  the  mar- 
gin is  indented  very  much  like  the  teeth  of  a  saw. 
Others  have  still  deeper  notches,  forming  what  is 
known  as  a  lobed  leaf.  In  another  class  of  leaves, 
the  divisions  extend  clear  to  the  midrib,  forming 
a  compound  leaf. 

Often  a  compound  leaf  is  mistaken  for  several 
simple  leaves,  but  it  can  be  distinguished  in  two 
ways.  That  part  which  falls  off  in  the  autumn  is 
the  whole  leaf,  and  new  buds  for  the  next  year's 


66  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

growth  develop  at  the  base  of  the  leafstalk.  The 
divisions,  or  leaflets,  of  a  compound  leaf  do  not,  in 
falling,  separate  from  the  main  stem,  which  is,  in 
fact,  the  midrib;  and  no  buds  develop  at  the  bases 
of  the  petioles  of  the  leaflets. 

Examples  of  compound  leaves  are  the  walnut, 
rose,  and  locust.  Some  compound  leaves  have 
their  leaflets  compound.  These  leaves  are  called 
doubly  compound.  Some  are  even  trebly  com- 
pound. Examples  of  lobed  leaves  are  the  oak, 
maple,  and  water-melon  vine;  of  toothed  leaves, 
the  elm,  willow,  and  peach;  of  simple  leaves,  or 
entire,  smooth  margins,  Indian  corn,  redbud,  and 
plantain. 

Leaves  are  built  upon  a  framework  of  veins. 
Generally,  there  is  one  large  vein  in  the  middle  of 
the  leaf,  called  the  midvein,  and  many  small 
veins  issue  from  it,  making  it  resemble  a  feather. 
In  others  there  is  a  network  of  small  veins  on 
each  side  of  the  midvein.  The  veins  in  many 
leaves  all  radiate  from  one  point,  which  is  the 
point  of  attachment  of  the  petiole  to  the  blade,  pro- 
viding there  is  a  petiole  present.  A  good  example 
of  the  last  is  the  common  garden  nasturtium. 

Compound  leaves  take  their  shapes  from  the 
style  of  venation.  If  the  small  veins  spring  out 
along  the  midvein,  the  result  is  a  compound  leaf 
like  that  of  the  sumac  or  tomato;  but  if  they  all 
radiate  from  one  point,  the  result  is  a  compound 
leaf  like  that  of  the  chestnut  or  clover. 


PLANTS.  67 

Much  could  be  said  about  divided  leaves,  for  the 
varieties  are  endless,  but  the  common  principle 
underlying  all  is  that  the  more  divisions  a  leaf  has, 
the  more  surface  there  is  exposed  compared  with 
the  mass.  Some  plants  grow,  or  their  ancestors 


THRESHING    WHEAT. 


have  grown,  in  locations  where  there  was  so  niuch 
competition  among  the  leaves  for  air  and  light  that 
a  leaf  with  an  entire  margin  could  not  secure 
enough  food  and  energy  to  carry  on  the  necessary 
work,  so  it  had  to  divide  its  blade  to  accomplish 
the  result. 


68  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

The  author  has  found  on  sassafras,  and  on  black- 
berry vines,  in  very  shaded  locations,  no  less  than 
twenty  different  kinds  of  leaves,  varying  from  sim- 
ple through  lobed  to  compound,  on  a  single,  indi- 
vidual plant.  Thus  it  has  come  about,  through 
struggle  for  existence,  that  plants  change  their 
structure  and  habits  to  make  a  living  for  them- 
selves and  to  propagate  their  kind.  It  is  much  the 
same  with  lower  animals  and  with  human  beings. 
Men  will  do  all  kinds  of  work,  and  endure  great 
hardships,  in  order  to  provide  for  themselves  and 
their  children. 

" 

STORING   OF   FOOD    IN    PLANTS. 

Under  the  discussion  of  the  work  done  by 
leaves,  it  was  stated  that  they  take  gases  from  the 
air,  and  mineral  substances  from  the  earth,  and 
manufacture  them  into  organized  substances.  A 
part  of  these  substances  goes  to  build  up  the  plant 
structure  itself,  but  in  the  late  stages  of  plant 
growth,  the  best  and  richest  materials  are  stored 
away  in  different  parts  of  the  plant  for  the  begin- 
ning  of  the  next  year's  growth,  or  for  the  starting 
of  new  plants.  When  a  new  plant  starts  into  life, 
or  when  the  same  plant  renews  its  life  and  growth 
after  the  cessation  of  activities  during  winter,  there 
must  be  something  for  it  to  start  on  before  leaves 
are  put  forth  to  gather  in  and  make  food. 

With  plants  that  do  not  annually  die  down  to  the 
ground,  new  buds  can  be  found  at  the  base  of  the 


PLANTS.  69 

leaf  stalks  in  autumn  which  will  give  rise  to  new 
leaves  the  next  year.  These  buds  are  stored  with 
food.  The  food  is  built  into  them  during  the  sum- 
mer, and  an  additional  supply  is  drawn  from  the 
old  leaves  just  before  they  fall  off  for  the  winter. 
Some  food,  also,  for  the  starting  of  new  leaves  is, 
no  doubt,  stored  at  other  places  in  the  plant  body, 
either  in  the  cells  or  among  them;  and,  no  doubt,  a 
large  quantity  in  the  roots;  for,  when  sap  begins  to 
flow  in  spring,  it  contains  rich  food.  The  sugar 
maple,  and  hickory  are  good  examples  of  trees  in 
which  much  sugar  is  present  in  the  first  flow  of 
sap.  In  the  hickory,  there  is  such  a  large  propor- 
tion of  sugar  that  it  exudes  as  a  thick  syrup,  \vith 
the  sweetness  and  consistency  of  honey.  This  food 
goes  to  start  new  leaves  before  they  are  able  to 
work  for  themselves;  but  as  soon  as  the  store  of 
food  is  used  up,  and  they  have  unfolded  to  the  air 
and  light,  mineral  substances  rise  with  the  sap  and 
the  building  process  begins. 

Plants  that  die  down  to  the  ground  annually,  and 
renew  their  growth  from  bulbs,  tubers,  and  under- 
ground stems,  store  up  food  in  these  to  be  kept 
over  winter,  or  during  a  dry  season;  and  from  these 
the  new  plants  draw  supplies  until  they  are  large 
enough  to  have  sufficient  leaf  and  root  surface 
started  to  take  care  of  themselves  without  any 
help.  Examples  of  these  are  bulbs  of  lilies  and 
onions,  "tubers  of  potatoes  and  artichokes,  and 
underground  stems  of  Solomon's  seal  and  black- 


70  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

berry  vines.  Some  of  the  bulbs  and  tubers  are  rich 
in  the  starchy  foods. 

Flowering  plants,  in  their  native  state,  bear  seeds 
from  which  new  plants  start.  Those,  of  course, 
which  have  bulbs,  tubers,  and  underground  stems, 
have  a  double  advantage — for  they  start  their 
young  from  seeds  as  well  as  from  these  under- 
ground parts.  Seeds  are  storehouses  for  food  of 
the  highest  type. 

The  final  total  energy  of  a  plant  goes  for  the 
production  of  seeds.  It  labors  day  in  and  day  out, 
from  germination  to  maturity,  to  gather  and  organ- 
ize rich  materials  to  be  stored  in  its  seeds  for  the 
production  of  new  generations.  Annuals  exhaust 
all  their  energy  and  die  as  soon  as  their  seeds  are 
matured.  Most  of  them  leave  dry,  withered  stalks 
for  an  early  and  rapid  decay;  because,  practically, 
all  nutritious  substances  from  roots  and  branches 
were  withdrawn  at,  and  before  death,  for  the  final 
and  complete  development  of  the  seeds. 

THE    IMPORTANCE    OF    PERFECT   SEEDS. 

Of  all  the  parts  of  a  plant  that  contain  food, 
seeds  are  the  richest  with  respect  to  their  size. 
There  is  very  little  water  in  them — the  food  is  con- 
solidated and  rich. 

There  is  very  little  substance  but  water  taken 
from  the  soil  during  the  early  growth  of  plants, 
but  when  fhe  seeds  begin  to  form  and  ripen,  the 
richest  ingredients  are  called  for.  It  is  then  that 


PLANTS. 


71 


the  quality  of  the  soil  is  tested;  and,  if  it  be  poor, 
one  heavy  crop  of  seeds  will  so  exhaust  it  that  a 
crop  of  the  same  kind  the  succeeding  year  will  not 
be  worth  the  harvesting. 

Weeds,  of  course,  rob  the  soil  for  their  seeds; 
but,  since  they  either  fall  upon  the  ground  or  are 


MEASURING     WHEAT     AT     THE     THRASHER. 

plowed  under,  the  rich  substances  they  take  from 
the  soil  are  returned  to  it  again.  Useful,  seed- 
bearing  crops  are  usually  taken  away  from  the  soil 
on  which  they  were  grown,  little  or  none  of  their 
substance  ever  being  returned.  In  this  way  soil, 
whether  it  be  rich  or  poor,  will,  sooner  or  later, 


72  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

lose  its  vitality  and  refuse  to  yield  harvests  to  the 
cultivator.  When  a  harvest  of  seeds  is  taken  from 
a  field,  its  equivalent  in  some  form  should  be 
returned  if  the  quality  of  the  soil  is  to  be  retained. 

The  composition  of  seeds  and  other  parts  of 
plants  will  be  taken  up  in  another  chapter,  but  let 
it  be  noticed  here,  that  seeds,  together  with  bulbs 
and  tubers,  are  the  great  sources  from  which 
human  beings  derive  food.  Without  them,  life  as 
it  now  is  would  be  impossible. 

If  it  can  be  said  that  plants  desire,  it  is  not  their 
desire  to  produce  seeds  and  tubers  for  man  to  use, 
but  for  the  propagation  of  their  kind.  In  fact, 
they  take  all  precaution  to  prevent  their  being 
eaten; — the  hard  shells  of  nuts,  the  thorny  covering 
of  some,  the  repellant  taste  of  the  outer  coats  of 
others,  and  a  hundred  other  devices  making  them 
difficult  to  secure.  Plants,  having  no  particular 
device  for  the  protection  of  their  seeds  against 
animals,  produce  so  many  to  each  plant  that  a  few 
always  escape  and  find  their  way  to  suitable  soil 
for  germination. 

Man,  with  machinery,  does  what  he  likes  with 
plants.  Those  kinds  which  he  finds  rich  in  starch, 
sugar,  oils,  or  albumen,  he  cultivates  to  the  exclu- 
sion of  other  plants.  Under  cultivation,  there  is 
no  longer  a  struggle  for  existence — the  farmer  with 
his  machinery  protects  and  aids  them  so  much,  that 
plants  can  use  their  entire  energy  in  producing 
more  food.  Thus  plants,  which  in  the  wild  state 


PLANTS.  73 

produced  only  a  few  small  seeds  or  bulbs,  in  a  culti- 
vated state  produce  many  large  ones.  Seeds  whose 
coverings  offer  almost  complete  resistance  to  the 
teeth  of  animals,  offer  none  to  the  teeth  of  mod- 
ern machinery,  and  are  converted  into  numerous 
kinds  of  wholesome  and  nutritious  foods. 


INDIVIDUAL    PLANTS — INDIAN   CORN. 

Indian  Corn,  or  Maize,  belongs  to  the  family  of 
grasses.  This  can  easily  be  seen  by  a  close  obser- 
vation of  the  leaves  and  stalk.  It  will  be  found 
that  the  veins  run  parallel,  and  that  the  stalk  is 
jointed  like  that  of  grass.  The  stalk  is  somewhat 
tubular,  the  outer  body  being  hard  and  tough,  giving 
it  great  strength.  The  inside  is  made  up  of  a  soft, 
cellular,  pithy  mass  with  parallel,  fibrous  strings, 
running  lengthwise  from  joint  to  joint,  similar  to 
the  veins  in  the  leaves. 

The  corn  plant  grows  from  six  to  fifteen  feet  high. 
It  is  from  a  light  or  yellowish  green  to  a  dark  green 
in  color  during  the  growing  season,  the  composition 
of  the  soil  and  the  amount  of  rain-fall  making  the 
difference  in  color.  When  the  ripening  of  the 
grain  begins,  and  the  food  stuffs  are  withdrawn 
from  the  stalks  and  leaves,  the  color  changes  to 
yellow  and  brown,  with  sometimes  a  tinge  of 
orange  and  red. 

The  plant  has  but  one  central  shaft,  there  being 
no  branches.  The  leaves  are  arranged  alternately 


LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


on  the  stem,  and  are  attached  to  it  directly,  with- 
out any  petioles.  They  are  long  and  ribbon-like, 
with  a  very  heavy  midrib  through  the  center  from 
the  base  to  the  tip.  They  arch  upward  in  a  grace- 
ful curve,  the  inner  part 
sloping  downward  to 
the  central  shaft,  and 
the  outer  part  sloping 
downward  and  away 
from  it.  The  attach- 
ment around  the  base 
is  such  as  to  give  them 
a  trough,  so  that  part 
of  the  rainfall  is  carried 
to  the  stalk  to  find  its 
way  to  the  roots  of  the 
plant,  and  the  rest  is 
directed  away.  The 
leaves  wave  under  the 
influence  of  the  wind  in 
a  plume-like  fashion, 
and  the  plant  as  a 
whole  bends  and  nods 
with  every  passing 
breeze. 

The  blossom  of  corn  is  divided  into  two  parts, 
one  part  being  at  the  very  top  of  the  plant,  and  the 
other  part  about  half  way  down  the  stalk.  The 
part  of  the  blossom  at  the  top  is  the  pollen-bear- 
ing or  staminate  part,  and  the  part  down  on  the 


CORN  GROWING. 


PLANTS.  .  75 

stalk  is  the  pollen  -  receiving,  or  pistillate  part. 
Sometimes  there  are  two,  three,  or  more  of  the  lat- 
ter, but  generally  only  one.  They  are  called  the  ears 
of  corn,  while  the  part  at  the  top  is  called  the  tassel. 

The  tassel  bears  the  pollen,  which  falls  upon  the 
ear  or  is  carried  to  it  by  the  wind.  The  ripened 
ear  has  a  long,  cylindrical,  rough,  woody  core  called 
the  cob.  During  the  early  stages  of  the  ear,  the 
cob  is  green  and  soft;  connected  with  it  in  rows  are 
long,  white,  or  green  threads,  commonly  called 
silks  (but  in  reality  the  pistils  of  the  blossom), 
which  extend  several  inches  beyond  the  outer  end 
of  the  cob.  These  silks,  or  pistils,  receive  the  fall- 
ing pollen  and  bring  it  back  to  their  points  of 
attachment  to  the  cob,  at  which  places  it  produces 
the  seeds,  or  grains,  of  corn.  As  soon  as  the 
grains  are  mature,  the  silks  die  and  turn  brown. 

The  whole  ear  of  corn  is  covered  completely  by 
layers  of  tightly-fitting  leaves,  similar  to  the  leaves 
of  the  plant.  This  part  is  called  the  husk  and 
must  be  removed  before  the  grains  can  be  shelled 
from  the  cob.  The  husk  is  a  protection  for  the 
grains  against  the  weather  and  the  attacks  of  ani- 
mals. There  is  a  similar  covering  around  grains  of 
wheat  and  oats,  but  in  those  cereals  there  is  a 
separate  husk  for  each  seed. 

PLANTING   AND    HARVESTING    CORN. 

Indian  corn,  in  the  central  states,  is  usually 
planted  in  May  and  June,  though  sometimes  as 


PLANTS.  77 

early  as  April,  and  as  late  as  July.  After  the 
ground  is  plowed  and  harrowed,  it  is  planted  in 
rows  about  four  feet  apart,  the  plants  being  from 
one  to  two  feet  apart  in  the  row.  It  is  planted 
with  corn  drills  which  plant  one  or  two  rows  at  a 
time,  according  to  the  style  of  the  drill.  Those 
which  plant  two  rows  at  a  time  are  drawn  by  two 
horses,  and  those  which  plant  only  one  require  but 
one  horse. 

The  seeds  germinate  in  a  few  days,  sending  up  a 
single  blade,  as  all  grasses  do,  the  seed  consisting 
of  but  one  cotyledon.  As  it  growrs  upward,  it  puts 
out  leaves  first  on  one  side  then  on  the  other,  so 
that  there  are  two  rows  of  leaves  up  the  stalk  on 
opposite  sides;  but,  as  has  been  said  before,  these 
are  arranged  alternately  on  the  stem.  Last  of  all 
the  tassel  and  ears  appear;  and  as  soon  as  the 
grains  in  the  ear  are  mature  the  whole  plant  dies, 
from  the  tassel  to  the  lowest  roots. 

Most  species  of  the  grass  family  are  provided 
with  bulbs  or  underground  stems,  and  spring  up 
each  season  from  them;  but  the  corn  plant  has  no 
such  underground  parts.  New  corn  plants  ger- 
minate from  seeds  only.  It  is  the  same  with  wheat 
and  oats.  Corn,  however,  has  a  species  of  roots 
rarely  found  in  other  cultivated  plants.  They  are 
called  aerial  roots.  They  grow  out  in  circles  near 
the  base  of  the  stalk,  and  are  called  brace-roots  be- 
cause they  brace  the  stalk  of  corn  against  the  force 
of  the  wind.  They  appear  just  before  the  plant  is 


78  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

full  grown,  because,  with  the  added  weight  of  the 
heavy  ear,  there  is  then  the  most  need  of  support. 

Weeds  soon  spring  up  in  a  corn  field  on  account 
of  the  plants  being  so  far  apart;  so  incessant  culti- 
vation is  necessary  to  destroy  them.  Cultivation 
not  only  keeps  down  the  weeds,  but  also  keeps  the 
soil  in  a  condition  for  holding  moisture.  Corn,  of 
all  plants,  requires  a  great  amount  of  water  for  its 
growth  and  development.  It  should  be  plowed 
four  or  five  times  during  a  season,  best  while  the 
plants  are  small,  so  that  the  roots  may  not  be  inter- 
fered with.  After  the  plants  are  large  enough  to 
completely  shade  the  ground,  further  cultivation  is 
unnecessary;  for  the  shade  not  only  prevents  weeds 
from  growing,  but  also  keeps  in  check  a  too  rapid 
evaporation  of  soil  moisture. 

Corn  is  harvested,  or  gathered,  in  late  autumn, 
or  at  any  time  during  the  winter.  Some  husk  it  in 
the  field,  and  others  cut  and  gather  it,  husk  and 
all,  leaving  the  husking  till  the  corn  is  needed  for 
the  market  or  for  feeding.  The  leaves  of  corn  be- 
ing of  the  same  nature  as  hay,  the  stalks  are  some- 
times cut  just  before  frost  and  made  into  shocks  in 
the  field  or  placed  in  barns.  In  this  form  it  is 
known  as  fodder,  and  makes  a  good,  rough  feed  for 
cattle  and  horses  during  autumn  and  winter.  The 
stalks  are  not  eaten,  being  too  tough  and  coarse. 
Owing  to  its  bulky  nature,  corn  fodder  is  never 
shipped  away  to  market,  but  is  fed  on  the  farm 
where  it  is  raised. 


PLANTS.  79 

The  grains,  or  seeds,  of  corn,  are  the  most  useful 
part  of  the  plant.  They  are  rich  in  starchy  matter, 
and,  for  that  reason,  are  used  largely  in  fattening 
animals  for  market.  Corn  being  rich  in  starch, 
and  that  being  easily  converted  into  similar  organic 
compounds,  is  manufactured  into  many  different 
things.  The  most  common  are  corn-starch,  syrup, 
and  alcohol.  One  firm  has  succeeded  in  producing 
nearly  fifty  different  and  distinct  substances  from 
corn,  among  them  being  a  substitute  for  India  rub- 
ber, which  is  almost  as  good  as  the  genuine  article 
from  the  India  rubber  tree. 

It  would  be  almost  an  endless  task  to  describe 
all  the  virtues  of  this  wonderful  plant,  so  the  high 
tribute  paid  it  by  the  poet  Longfellow  is  given 
below: — 

Day  by  day  did  Hiawatha 
Go  to  wait  and  watch  beside  it ; 
Kept  the  dark  mold  soft  above  it, 
Kept  it  clean  from  weeds  and  insects, 
Drove  away,  with  scoffs  and  shoutings, 
Kagahgee,  the  king  of  ravens. 

Till  at  length  a  small  green  feather 
From  the  earth  shot  slowly  upward, 
Then  another  and  another, 
And  before  the  summer  ended 
Stood  the  maize  in  all  its  beauty 
With  its  shining  robes  above  it, 
And  its  long,  soft,  yellow  tresses ; 
And  in  rapture  Hiawatha 
Cried  aloud,  "It  is  Mondamin! 
Yes,  the  friend  of  man,  Mondamin!" 
Then  he  called  to  old  Nokomis, 
"...  .  .And  lagoo,  the  great  boaster, 


80  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

Showed  them  where  the  maize  was  growing, 
Told  them  of  his  wondrous  vision, 
Of  his  wrestling  and  his  triumph, 
Of  this  new  gift  to  the  nations, 
Which  should  be  their  food  forever. 
And  still  later,  when  in  Autumn 
Changed  the  long,  green  leaves  to  yellow. 
And  the  soft  and  juicy  kernels 
Grew  like  wampum  hard  and  yellow 
Then  the  ripened  ears  he  gathered, 
Stripped  the  withered  leaves  from  off  them, 
As  he  once  had  stripped  the  wrestler, 
Gave  the  first  feast  of  Mondamin, 
And  made  known  unto  his  people 
This  new  gift  of  the  Great  Spirit. 

THE    POTATO. 

The  potato  plant  belongs  to  the  nightshades,  a 
family  of  plants  containing  poisonous  principles. 
It  is  a  near  cousin  to  the  common  garden  tomato. 
The  potato  is  a  native  of  Mexico  and  Central 
America,  but  has  been  introduced  into  and  is  now 
cultivated  in  many  different  countries  and  climates. 

The  tuber,  or  swollen  portion  of  the  underground 
stem,  is  the  part  of  the  plant  used  for  food.  In  its 
native  state,  the  tuber  of  the  potato  is  no  larger 
than  the  plum  or  cherry,  but  by  cultivation  and 
selection  it  has  increased  to  its  present  large 
dimensions. 

Scattered  over  the  tuber  are  a  number  of  buds, 
commonly  called  eyes,  and  from  these  buds  new 
plants  grow. 

In  planting  potatoes,  the  large  ones  are  cut  into 


PLANTS.  81 

several  pieces,  but  each  piece  must  contain  an  eye. 
Since  the  tubers  grow  and  expand  in  the  ground, 
they  require  a  loose  soil  for  a  good  crop. 

Potatoes  are  planted  in  rows  about  four  feet 
apart  so  as  to  admit  of  cultivation;  and  the  hills  in 
each  row  are  from  two  to  three  feet  apart.  The 
time  for  planting  is  from  the  final  disappearance 
of  frost  from  the  ground  until  July,  according  to  the 
variety.  The  early  varieties  mature,  in  central  and 
northern  United  States,  about  the  first  of  July; 
and  the  late  varieties  in  September  and  October. 

The  plant  bears  blossoms,  and  grows  from  two 
to  four  feet  high,  with  a  tendency  to  vine,  or  run 
along  the  ground;  hence,  the  term  potato  vine. 
As  soon  as  the  blossoming  is  fully  over,  all  of  the 
nutritious  substances  of  the  upper  part  of  the  plant 
are  withdrawn  and  stored  in  the  tubers,  the  vines 
quickly  withering  till  scarcely  any  trace  of  them 
can  be  found  a  few  weeks  later.  Corn  or  sun- 
flower stalks  have,  so  much  substance  left  in  them 
that  they  exist  a  year  or  more  after  maturing; 
but  not  so  with  the  potato  vine.  What  little 
material  is  left  in  it  soon  decomposes  and  the 
products  return  to  the  air  and  soil. 

Like  all  tubers  and  bulbs,  potatoes  are  composed 
largely  of  water,  and  must  be  kept  in  a  temperature 
above  freezing,  for  freezing  renders  them  unfit  for 
use  as  food.  Corrj,  and  most  seeds,  contain  such  a 
small  percentage  of  water  that  freezing  does  not 
affect  them.  Bulbs  and  tubers,  however,  can  be 


82  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

frozen  solid  without  impairing  their  germinating 
powers  or  food  properties,  providing  they  be  left 
in  the  ground  till  after  thawing  out.  The  soil 
seems  to  have  virtue  of  such  a  nature  as  to  with- 
draw the  frost  so  gradually,  and  in  such  a  manner 
as  to  revivify  them.  If  this  were  not  so,  a  great 
many  of  the  most  beautiful  of  wild  plants  would  be 
destroyed  by  the  deep  soil-frosts  of  severe  cold 
winters. 

The  usual  manner  of  keeping  potatoes  during 
winter  is  to  place  them  in  cellars  or  bins,  or  to 
cover  them  in  the  field  in  large  heaps,  first  with  a 
layer  of  straw,  then  with  earth  deep  enough  to  keep 
out  frost  and  shed  rain.  This  is  claimed  to  be 
one  of  the  best  ways  of  storing  them. 

Potatoes  are  classed  with  the  starchy  foods, 
although  less  than  one-fourth  of  their  composition 
is  starch.  Three-fourths  of  the  potato  is  water; 
so  that  there  is  but  one-fourth  solid  food. 

Besides  being  used  very  extensively  for  food,  the 
starch  of  the  tuber  is  made  into  dextrin,  grape 
sugar,  and  alcohol. 

The  skin  of  the  potato  contains  a  poison,  but  this 
is  destroyed  by  steaming  or  boiling. 

BEANS    AND    PEAS. 

There  are  many  varieties  of  beans  and  peas,  and, 
although  they  differ  to  some  extent,  yet  they  are 
very  similar  in  their  nature  and  growth.  The  most 
prominent  marking  of  the  large  order  to  which 


PLANTS.  83 

these  plants  belong,  is  the  seed  pod.  The  bean  or 
pea  pod  is  in  reality  a  transformed  leaf.  When  a 
pod  is  broken  open,  laid  out  flat,  and  the  seeds 
taken  out,  it  resembles  a  leaf  very  much.  The 
long^tough  fiber  along  the  back  of  the  pod  cor- 
responds to  the  mid-vein  of  the  leaf,  and  the  line 
along  the  front  of  the  pod  is  the  union  of  its  two 
margins.  The  fibers  of  green  pods  are  called 
strings  and  must  be  removed  before  the  pods  are 
cooked  for  food. 

Beans  and  peas  are  good  examples  of  the  two- 
cotyledonous  plants.  That  is,  the  seeds  are  in  two 
parts,  and  in  germination  these  two  halves  are 
lifted  into  the  air  above  the  ground  to  act  both  as 
leaves  and  a  storehouse  of  supply,  till  the  plants 
have  enough  roots  and  leaves  to  make  a  living  for 
themselves.  It  will  be  noticed  that  the  two  cotyle- 
dons, or  halves  of  the  seed,  turn  green  as  soon  as 
they  reach  the  light  and  air,  which  means  that 
they  are  endowed  with  chlorophyl  and  can  manufac- 
ture protoplasm  as  well  as  supply  it  ready  made. 
As  soon  as  true  leaves  are  developed,  the  cotyle- 
dons are  absorbed  by  the  plant  and  fall  into  disuse. 

Beans  and  peas  grow  rapidly,  requiring  but  from 
six  to  ten  weeks  for  growth  and  maturity;  hence, 
they  are  planted  from  early  spring  till  the  middle 
of  summer.  They  are  annual  plants  and  die  away, 
root  and  stalk,  as  soon  as  the  seeds  ripen. 

The  seeds  germinate  and  spring  up  in  a  day  or 
two  when  planted  in  warm,  moist  soil.  They  need 
but  a  thin  covering  of  earth  for  germination. 


84  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

When  covered  too  deeply,  they  decay  in  the  earth 
and  no  crop  results.  They  are  planted  either  in 
rows  for  cultivation  or  sown  thickly,  as  grass  or 
wheat,  so  as  to  take  full  possession  of  the  soil,  and 
grow  about  as  well  in  one  way  as  the  other. 

The  crop  is  gathered  and  shelled  from  the  pod 
by  hand,  or  cut  with  a  mowing  machine,  and 
threshed  with  a  separator  similar  to  the  one  used 
for  wheat  and  oats. 

Some  beans  are  picked  before  the  seeds  are  ma- 
ture, the  tender  pods  being  cooked  and  used  for  food. 
In  this  green  form  they  are  known  as  string-beans. 

There  are  a  great  many  kinds  of  beans  and  peas. 
Some  are  used  as  food  for  human  beings  and  other 
kinds  for  live  stock.  The  latter  kind  are  fed  very 
much  as  hay  is — cattle,  horses,  and  pigs  eating 
them.  They  eat  not  only  the  seeds,  but  pods  and 
leaves  also.  Beans  and  peas  are  rich  in  starch  and 
albuminoids,  the  former  producing  fat,  and  the 
latter  flesh,  or  lean  meat;  so  that  they  are  desir- 
able in  fattening  animals  for  market. 

All  plants  of  this  order  not  only  produce  seeds 
rich  in  albumen,  or  nitrogenous  food,  but  they  also 
have  the  power  of  extracting  free  nitrogen  from 
the  air  and  fixing  it  by  means  of  their  roots  as 
nitrates  in  the  soil,  from  whence  other  plants  can 
draw  supplies.  They  are  able  to  do  this  through 
nitrifying  germs  growing  in  little  knobs  on  their 
roots.  For  this  reason  such  plants  are  considered 
beneficial  to  the  soil  and  are  often  grown  and 
plowed  under  as  fertilizers. 


CHAPTER  III. 
TREES. 

The  study  of  trees  important.  Planting  groves.  Trees  afford 
beauty,  timber,  and  protection.  Individual  trees: — the  elm,  the 
sugar  maple,  the  oak,  the  cottonwood,  the  hickory. 

At  first  thought  it  seems  unnecessary  to  take  up 
time  under  the  subject  of  agriculture  for  the  study 
of  trees,  but  when  viewed  in  its  true  and  broadest 
sense,  the  study  of  trees  commands  a  place  of  no 
small  importance.  It  is  a  part  of  farm  life  that 
has  generally  been  too  much  neglected,  but  which 
soon  must  become  a  serious  study. 

When  this  country  was  first  settled,  it  had  the 
most  magnificent  forest  areas  of  any  part  of  the 
world.  It  was  a  matter  of  necessity,  of  course,  to 
clear  away  a  great  part  of  these  forests  for  timber 
and  agricultural  purposes.  The  latter  half  of  the 
past  century  has  witnessed  not  only  a  wholesale 
destruction  of  vast  areas  of  forests,  but  also  a 
waste  of  the  timber.  This  has  continued  at  such  a 
rate  that  good  timber  is  fast  becoming  very  scarce. 
The  loss  of  timber  is  not  all  the  damage.  It  is  a 
well  know  fact  that  forests,  with  the  deeply  pene- 
trating roots,  and  gigantic  leaf  surface  for  the 
evaporation  of  water,  are  great  regulators  of  rain- 

85 


86 


LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


fall.  They  regulate  the  surrounding  atmosphere 
by  the  enormous  amount  of  water  evaporated  by 
their  leaves,  and  by  the  absorption  of  heat  neces- 
sary for  tree  growth. 


SOUTHERN    PINES. 


TREES.  87 

The  water  evaporated  by  leaves  keeps  the  air 
saturated.  This  moisture  aids  in  the  precipitation 
of  rain.  When,  however,  there  are  few  trees  to 
supply  atmospheric  moisture — since  rainfall  is  de- 
pendent upon  additional  moisture  carried  by  winds 
from  the  seas,  long  dry  periods  are  likely  to  be 
experienced  in  certain  sections  during  summer 
when  rain  is  most  needed. 

A  forest  gives  out  much  moisture  to  the  air 
by  leaf  evaporation,  and  holds  back  the  water  on 
the  forest  floor,  so  that  it  is  given  off  gradually. 
This  is  an  ideal  condition.  It  is  not  the  great 
amount  of  water  falling  upon  the  ground  at  one 
time  that  does  most  good,  but  the  constant  supply. 
A  forest  holds  back  the  water  in  two  ways:  by 
shading  the  ground  so  that  little  evaporation  takes 
place,  and  by  retaining  it  among  fallen  dead  and 
decaying  leaves  and  branches.  The  latter  not 
only  has  a  tendency  to  produce  frequent  summer 
rains,  but  also  prevents  the  rapid  rushing  away  of 
heavy  rains  to  cause  floods. 

Trees  are  great  barriers  against  scorching,  hot 
winds  in  summer,  and  against  strong,  destructive 
winds  coming  at  any  time  of  the  year.  In  the  west- 
ern prairie  states  many  groves  have  been  planted 
purely  as  wind-breaks  for  farm  buildings.  They 
have  proved  to  be  very  efficient  in  that  respect. 
Besides,  the  people  there  are  now  able  to  use  many 
of  the  trees  for  fuel  and  timber  because  of  the 
necessary  thinning  as  the  trees  grow  in  size. 


88  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


THE    PLANTING    OF   GROVES. 

The  planting  of  groves  must  now  be  taken  up 
in  nearly  all  sections  of  the  United  States  to  supply 
the  deficiency  caused  by  the  wanton  and  ignorant 
destruction  of  trees  which  has  taken  place.  Grove 
or  forest  planting  will  be  a  general  good  to  the 
country  at  large,  and  a  special  good  to  those  who 
plant  them.  It  will  be  capital  well  invested. 

A  cultivated  forest,  to  be  profitable,  should  be 
planted  and  tended  much  the  same  as  a  field  of 
corn.  The  ground  should  be  plowed  and  har- 
rowed late  in  autumn,  and  the  seeds,  or  nuts, 
planted  in  rows  from  three  to  four  feet  apart  so  as 
to  admit  of  cultivation  for  the  first  few  years.  The 
seeds  should  be  planted  in  the  fall  of  the  year, 
because  most  kinds  require  the  moisture  and  frosts 
of  winter  to  render  them  capable  of  sprouting  in 
the  spring.  This  is  nature's  way  of  planting  trees. 

In  planting  a  few  acres  of  trees  on  a  farm,  the 
kinds  should  be  considered.  It  is  always  well  to 
have  a  variety,  but  the  greatest  numbers  should  be 
those  that  have  the  greatest  value,  both  for  their 
wood  and  their  fruit.  A  few  years  after  planting 
the  thinning  out  of  every  alternate  tree  is  neces- 
sary, and  a  few  years  after  that  still  more  is 
required.  The  first  thinnings,  of  course,  are  small, 
but  they  have  a  market  value,  and  can  be  used  in 
various  ways.  For  instance,  the  first  thinnings  of 
hickories  are  used  as  walking  sticks,  and  always 


TREES.  89 

command  a  good  price.  The  later  thinnings — 
when  the  trees  have  attained  a  diameter  of  an  inch 
or  more — can  be  used  for  almost  numberless  pur- 
poses, both  on  the  farm  and  in  the  factory. 

Such  a  cultivated  grove  will  require  some  ground, 
but  the  poorest  of  land  can  be  used.  Land  on 
which  nothing  else  will  grow  will  produce  a  good 
growth  of  trees  with  a  little  care.  After  the  trees 
have  attained  some  size,  the  field  can  be  used  as  a 
pasture  for  live  stock.  Not  much  grass  will  grow 
on  the  ground,  but  the  shade  is  of  benefit  during 
the  hot  summer  months,  and  they  afford  protection 
against  cold  winds  in  winter.  Pigs,  especially,  do 
well  when  raised  on  wood  land.  They  not  only 
like  the  shade,  but  find  a  considerable  amount  of 
food  beneath  and  among  the  fallen  leaves.  They 
eat  acorns  very  greedily. 

TREES   AFFORD    BEAUTY,  TIMBER,  AND    PROTECTION. 

Besides  the  monetary  value  of  a  forest,  it  adds 
to  the  beauty  of  a  farm.  A  solitary  ornamental, 
shade,  or  fruit  tree,  is  beautiful;  but  a  forest  or 
a  grove  has  a  charm  which  surpasses  them  all. 
There  are  few  things  more  beautiful  and  more 
harmonious.  A  stroll  through  the  woods  in  autumn, 
winter,  spring,  or  summer  is  one  of  the  most  pleas- 
ant pastimes  that  can  be  taken  by  one  who  loves 
nature. 

Trees,  whether  solitary,  in  groups,  or  in  a  forest, 
impress  us  with  their  size,  endurance,  symmetry, 


90 


LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


and  beauty.  When  other  plants  have  yielded  to 
frost  and  cold,  and  died  away,  trees  stand  proud 
and  sublime  against  the  strongest  blasts  of  winter, 
raising  into  the  air  their  trunks  and  branches  with 


COTTONWOOD   TREE.       OAK    FOREST   IN   THE    DISTANCE. 


TREES.  91 

mantles  of  snow  and  ice.  Then  comes  the  renew- 
ing of  life-activities  in  spring,  with  the  swelling  and 
bursting  of  buds,  and  the  display  of  the  softest 
tints  and  colors.  Summer  brings  its  millions  of 
leaves,  its  welcome  shade,  and  its  subdued  colors. 
Most  glorious  of  all  are  the  radiant  foliage  color- 
ings of  autumn,  telling  that  the  trees  have  fur- 
nished their  season's  work,  and  are  ready  for  the 
long  rest  of  winter. 

A  small  tract  of  woodland  on  a  farm  presents 
another  advantage,  and  that  is  the  number  of  birds 
that  will  be  attracted  by  it.  Birds  love  the  shelter 
of  trees  for  roosting  and  nesting,  and  will  seek 
them  wherever  they  can  be  found. 

During  the  nesting  and  breeding  season,  the 
parent  birds  supply  their  young  with  food  from  the 
immediate  surroundings.  The  food  carried  to 
young  birds  consists  mainly  of  soft -bodied  insects, 
such  as  grubs  and  caterpillars,  and  these  generally 
are  the  forms  most  destructive  to  crops. 

Birds,  when  undisturbed,  as  they  would  be  in  a 
standing  grove  of  trees,  love  to  build  year  after 
year  in  the  same  place.  So,  as  the  trees  grow,  the 
farm  would  have  a  constant  natural  exterminator 
at  work  against  the  enormous  inroads  of  insects, 
and  stronger  and  more  sure  than  the  best  artificial 
means. 

Besides  the  good  they  do  ip  keeping  down  the 
number  of  injurious  insects,  birds  add  to  the  cheer- 
fulness and  beauty  of  every  rural  scene,  with  their 


92  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

joyful  songs,  gentle  social  influences,  and  beauti- 
ful plumage. 


INDIVIDUAL   TREES. 

Since  the  subject  of  trees  has  become  such  an 
important  study,  it  is  well  to  know  something  about 
individual  trees,  so  that  their  names  and  character- 
istics may  become  more  familiar. 

It  is  no  easy  matter  to  say  wThat  trees  are  of  the 
most  importance,  because  that  depends  largely 
upon  taste  and  the  uses  for  which  they  are  planted. 
A  few  of  the  common  trees  of  central  United 
States  will  be  given  here. 

THE   ELM. 

The  Elm  Tree  family  is  a  large  one,  but  its  mem- 
bers have  so  many  points  in  common  that  a  descrip- 
tion of  one  will  give  a  tolerably  clear  image  of  all. 

The  common  American  elm  may  be  taken  as  a 
type.  This  elm  tree  grows  to  a  height  of  from 
fifty  to  more  than  one  hundred  feet.  The  bark  is 
rough,  and  dark  gray  in  color.  The  wood  is  red- 
dish brown,  and  rather  soft  in  its  nature,  but  diffi- 
cult to  split  on  account  of  its  interlacing  fibers. 
For  this  reason  the  young  trees  are  used  for  the 
hubs  of  wagon  and  carriage  wheels. 

The  elm  is  one  of  the  easiest  trees  to  identify 
because  of  its  shape.  It  rises  as  one  central  shaft 
for  a  considerable  distance,  then  divides  into 


TREES. 


93 


several  principal  branches,  and  these  again  into 
smaller  ones — all  taking  a  decided  upward  direc- 
tion, making  sharp 
angles  with  the  main 
trunk  and'  with  each 
other.  Very  few 
branches  assume  a 
horizontal  or  droop- 
ing position,  except 
the  outer  lowest 
ones.  This  upward 
tendency  of  all  the 
branches  gives  the 
tree  the  general 
shape  of  a  feather 
duster. 

All  the  branches 
of  an  elm  tree  are 
graceful  in  form 
throughout.  They 
are  not  as  pliant  and 
tender  as  those  of 
the  willow,  nor  as 
rugged  as  those  of 
the  oak,  but  possess 
that  unassuming 
grace  so  pleasing  to 
the  eye. 

Owing  to  the  up- 
ward tendency  of  the  THE  ELM.  BOX  ELDER  TO  THE  RIGHT. 


94  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

branches,  most  of  the  foliage  is  at  the  very  top  or 
the  tree.  In  very  few  cases  are  there  leaves  at 
any  other  place.  This  is  one  of  the  features  by 
means  of  which  the  tree  can  be  so  easily  distin- 
guished. 

The  leaves  of  the  elm  are  arranged  alternately, 
are  rather  rough  on  both  sides,  and  have  a  notched 
or  saw-toothed  margin.  The  leaf  can  always  be 
told  from  the  fact  that  one  side  is  always  a  little 
larger  than  the  other.  Strong  side-ribs  spring  out 
all  along  the  midrib,  terminating  in  the  margin. 
The  leaf,  as  a  whole,  is  strong  and  firm. 

The  blossoms  appear  early  in  spring,  and  the 
seeds  mature  before  the  leaves  are  fully  developed. 
A  single  tree  bears  an  almost  countless  number  of 
seeds,  from  which  young  elms  readily  grow. 

The  roots  of  the  elm  are  long  and  fibrous.  They 
do  not  strike  very  deeply  into  the  ground,  but  run 
near  the  surface  in  great  numbers.  Since  they 
grow  so  near  the  surface  and  take  up  so  much 
moisture,  very  little  other  vegetation  can  thrive 
near  the  tree;  hence  they  require  much  room. 
With  old  trees,  the  large  roots  strike  out  above  the 
ground  for  a  few  feet,  giving  the  lower  part  of  the 
trunk  a  very  uneven  appearance. 

The  American  elm  should  be  planted  for  its 
beauty  and  shade.  It  is  easy  to  start  and  very 
hardy,  growing  vigorously  for  nearly  a  hundred 
years.  It  is  seldom  attacked  by  insects;  and  its 
branches,  though  graceful  and  pliant,  are  so  tough 


TREES.  9.1 

that  the  strongest  blasts  seldom  break  them,     It 
retains  its  symmetry  of  form  till  old  age. 

THE  SUGAR  MAPLE. 

The  sugar,  or  hard  Maple  extends  from  New 
England  to  the  West  Central  States.  It  grows  more 
slowly  than  some  of  the  softer  varieties,  but  finally 
attains  a  very  large  size. 

When  growing  by  itself  in  an  open  space,  the 
branches  and  leaves  come  out  low  down  on  the 
stem.  The  top  of  the  tree  in  such  open  locations 
is  generally  oval  in  shape.  In  a  crowded  forest, 
however,  the  main  stem  often  rises  forty  or  fifty 
feet  without  a  single  branch. 

The  bark  of  the  sugar  maple  is  light  gray  in 
color,  and  is  smooth  on  young  trees,  but  rough  on 
older  ones. 

The  wood  is  very  hard,  strong,  fine-grained,  com- 
pact, and  capable  of  taking  a  high  polish.  It  is  one 
of  the  most  useful  of  all  woods,  especially  for  tools, 
furniture,  and  floors.  It  is  especially  made  use  of 
for  floors,  owing  to  its  fine  grain  and  great  wear- 
ing qualities.  The  wood  is  also  valuable  for  fuel, 
making  a  hot,  cheerful  bla?e  nearly  equal  to  that 
of  hickory. 

The  leaves  of  the  tree  are  among  the  most  beau- 
tiful of  all  leaves.  They  are  arranged  opposite  on 
the  stem,  and  have  long,  slender  petioles.  The 
simple  leaf  is  divided  into  five  principal  lobes  and 


96  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

several  smaller  sub-divisions,  each  ending  in  a 
sharp  point.  The  veins  radiate  from  the  base  of 
the  leaf  blade,  giving  it  the  palmate  form.  The 
autumn  colorings  of  maple  leaves  are  most  glori- 
ous. They  flash  under  October  skies  in  red,  crim- 
son, orange,  and  yellow. 

Maples  blossom  early,  and  the  seeds  ripen  before 
the  middle  of  summer.  The  seeds  are  borne  at 
the  end  of  long,  pendulous  foot-stalks,  diverging 
into  two  wings  forming  what  is  known  as  maple 
keys.  One  of  the  capsules  is  usually  empty,  prob- 
ably for  the  reason  that  two  seeds  cannot  ger- 
minate at  the  same  spot  without  crowding  each 
other.  By  means  of  the  two  wings  the  seeds  are 
carried  by  the  wind  and  planted  in  new  soil.  It  is 
easy  to  grow  maples  from  the  seed. 

One  of  the  most  noted  things  about  the  sugar 
maple  is  the  sweetness  of  its  sap — from  which  maple 
syrup  and  maple  sugar  are  made.  The  sap  is 
drawn  from  the  trees  in  very  early  spring,  before 
the  leaves  begin  to  grow.  Boring  into  the  tree  for 
sap  beyond  question  weakens  it  to  some  extent, 
but  the  injury  is  so  slight  that  the  effect  is  seldom 
noticed,  even  though  repeated  for  twenty  or  thirty 
consecutive  years. 

On  the  whole,  the  sugar  maple  is  a  very  beauti- 
ful and  useful  tree  and  will  stand  for  generations 
in  full  vigor.  No  farm  should  be  without  a  grove 
of  sugar  maples. 


TREES.  97 


OAKS. 

There  are  a  dozen  or  more  species  of  the  Oak 
family,  but  they  may  all  be  classed  roughly  into 
two  groups;  namely,  the  white  oak  group  and  the 
red  oak  group.  The  white  oak  group  matures  its 
fruit  in  one  year,  and  has  rounded,  lobed  leaves; 
the  red  oak  group  has  sharp-pointed,  lobed  leaves 
and  requires  two  years  for  the  ripening  of  its  fruit. 

The  oak  stands  as  an  emblem  of  strength,  forti- 
tude, and  endurance.  There  is  nothing  tender  or 
pliant  in  its  make-up.  It  is  the  embodiment  of 
massiveness  from  its  large,  anchoring  roots  to  the 
tips  of  its  branches.  Some  trees  bend  or  sway 
under  a  heavy  load  of  ice  and  snow  or  the  force  of 
a  strong  wind,  but  not  so  with  the  oak.  It  resists 
everything  with  its  own  great  strength.  For  this 
reason  it  has  a  wide  range,  being  able  to  grow  in 
almost  any  situation.  It  is  a  native  of  both  Europe 
and  America.  It  will  grow  in  the  sheltered  valley 
or  upon  the  unprotected  mountain  side,  and  thrive 
almost  equally  well  in  both  places. 

Oaks  grow  to  be  very  old.  They  are  about 
twenty  years  old  before  they  produce  acorns,  and  a 
century  or  more  before  they  are  fully  grown. 
There  are  oaks  in  England  nearly  a  thousand 
years  old,  and  some  in  the  United  States  several 
hundred. 

A  description  of  the  white  oak  will  give  a  fair 
notion  of  the  whole  family. 


98  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

The  white  oak  is  so  called  because  of  its  light- 
colored  bark.  The  bark  is  not  pure  white,  but 
light  gray.  The  bark  of  the  white  oak,  as  well  as 
of  all  oaks,  contains  a  large  amount  of  tannic  acid 
which  is  used  in  tanning  leather.  Enormous  quan- 
tities of  oak  bark  are  used  for  this  purpose. 

The  quality  of  strength  so  characteristic  of  the 
oak  family  is  accentuated  in  the  white  oak.  The 
trunk  is  large  and  strong,  the  branches  are  gnaried 
and  massive,  striking  out  boldly  from  the  main 
stem  nearly  at  right  angles,  while  the  great,  bulg- 
ing roots  at  its  base  strike  strongly  and  deeply  into 
the  earth,  giving  it  a  foothold  that  defies  the  wild- 
est storm. 

The  white  oak  blossoms  in  early  summer  and 
ripens  its  acorns  before  the  autumn  frosts  of  the 
same  season.  The  acorns  are  readily  eaten  by 
many  animals,  and  are  quite  nutritious.  They  may 
even  be  eaten  by  human  beings.  Young  white  oak 
trees  are  best  secured  by  planting  acorns,  because 
the  trees  do  not  bear  transplanting  well  owing  to 
the  downward  tendency  of  their  roots. 

Young  white  oak  leaves  unfold  slowly  from  the 
buds,  being  soft  in  texture  and  pink  in  color. 
They  are  green  during  the  summer,  and  turn  red 
in  autumn.  . 

The  wood  of  the  white  oak  has  made  it  famous 
the  world  over.  It  is  beyond  question  the  strong- 
est of  woods,  and  is  used  for  numberless  purposes 
where  strength  is  required.  The  strong  timbers  in 


TREES.  99 

ships,  houses,  cars,  bridges,  and  large  machinery 
are  nearly  all  made  of  white  oak.  It  is  also  used 
to  a  large  extent  in  making  strong  casks,  handles 
for  tools,  frame  work  for  carriages  and  wagons,  and 
different  parts  of  small  machinery.  There  has  been 
such  a  demand  for  it  in  so  many  lines  that  it  will 
soon  disappear  if  replanting  is  not  vigorously  begun. 

It  is  also  one  of  the  most  beautiful  and  sub- 
stantial woods  for  furniture  and  inside  finish,  tak- 
ing the  highest  polish  and  giving  an  air  of  strength 
and  solidity  so  desirable  in  such  work.  Some  of 
the  red  oak  group  are  equal  to,  or  even  better 
than  the  white  oak,  for  the  last  named  purposes, 
because  of  the  darker  color  of  the  wood. 

Oak  ranks  among  the  best  of  hard  woods  for 
fuel.  It  burns  with  a  hot,  cheerful  blaze  and  lasts 
for  a  long  time.  The  early  settlers  of  the  Missis- 
sippi valley  used  it  not  only  for  fuel,  but  they  split 
it  into  rails  for  fencing,  cut  it  into  posts,  and  built  it 
into  frames  of  houses  and  barns.  The  white  oak 
stands  the  effect  of  outdoor,  wet  weather  better 
than  any  of  the  other  species,  save,  perhaps,  the 
post  oak,  which  is  its  closest  relative. 

May  the  time  soon  come  when  every  farm  can 
boast  of  its  grove  of  young  oaks,  to  be  handed 
down  as  a  noble  heritage  to  future  generations.  . 

THE    COTTONWOOD. 

The  Cottonwood  belongs  to  the  poplar  family. 
They  all  have  soft  wood  and  are  very  rapid  grow- 


100  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

ers.  The  wood  is  so  soft  and  difficult  to  work  that 
the  trees  have  been  considered  worthless  till  of 
late.  It  has  recently  been  discovered  that  the 
wood  has  a  high  commercial  value,  and  can  be  used 
for  many  purposes.  It  is  now  used  very  exten- 
sively for  making  paper. 

Its  rapid  growth  and  hardiness  also  make  it  a 
favorite  with  those  who  wish  to  have  a  forest  or 
grove  in  a  few  years.  An  investment  in  a  grove  of 
cottonwood  trees  will  give  quick  returns.  The  trees 
grow  readily  in  almost  any  part  of  the  United 
States.  They  are  especially  valuable  for  shade 
trees,  not  only  in  the  country,  but  also  in  towns 
and  cities.  The  leaves  are  so  smooth  that  coal 
dust  does  not  settle  on  them  to  stop  up  the  pores, 
as  is  so  often  the  case  with  trees  having  rough 
leaves.  They  always  have  a  bright,  clear,  vigor- 
ous appearance. 

The  foliage  of  a  poplar  tree  is  not  dense,  but  the 
leafy  top  is  beautiful  and  interesting.  The  leaves 
are  always  in  motion.  One  kind,  the  aspen-leaf 
poplar,  has  its  leaves  so  delicately  adjusted  on 
their  long  petioles  that  they  are  in  constant  motion 
when  no  breath  of  air  can  be  perceived  by  any 
other  means. 

In  their  movement  they  make  a  noise  like  a 
shower  of  rain,  and  may  often  be  mistaken  for  such, 
even  when  the  sky  is  clear. 

The  leaves  are  somewhat  oval  in  shape,  broad  at 
the  base,  and  pointed  at  the  apex.  They  are  tough 
in  texture,  and  turn  yellow  in  autumn. 


TREES.  101 

The  blossoms  appear  in  early  spring  before  the 
leaves  are  fully  out.  They  hang  in  aments.  When 
the. seeds  are  ripe  they  are  surrounded  by  a  tuft  of 
long,  white  hair  resembling  cotton;  hence  the 
name.  By  means  of  this  cottony  substance  the 
seeds  are  carried  long  distances  by  the  wind. 

The  bark  is  rather  light  in  color,  even  on  very 
old  trees,  giving  them  a  cheerful  appearance. 
Solitary  old  cottonwood  trees  can  be  found  in 
many  sections  of  the  country.  They  have  few,  but 
large  branches,  which  extend  upward  nearly  par- 
allel with  the  trunk.  With  their  large  arms  they 
stand  out  in  rugged  beauty,  catching  every  passing 
breeze  with  leaves  high  in  the  top,  and  indicating 
that  activity  and  mirth  are  possible,  even  in  old  age. 

HICKORIES. 

Hickory  Trees  belong  to  the  family  of  walnuts. 
They  all  bear  nuts  and  compound  leaves,  making 
it  easy  to  distinguish  them.  The  leaves  are  pin- 
nately  compound,  ending  in  a  single  leaflet,  which 
form  is  known  as  odd  pinnate.  The  number  of 
leaflets  varies  from  five  to  twenty-three;  the  true 
walnuts  having  more  than  the  hickories. 

The  wood  of  the  whole  family  is  very  valuable. 
Walnut  timber  is  now  very  scarce,  owing  to  the 
great  demand  for  it  in  cabinet  work.  The  wood  of 
the  black  walnut  is  very  dark,  and  ranks  among  the 
most  costly  of  woods  for  fine  cabinet  work  and 
furniture. 


102  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

Hickory  timber  is  very  light  in  color,  splits  in 
straight  pieces,  is  tough  and  flexible,  and  its 
strength  is  unequalled.  Hence,  it  is  the  wood 
much  used  for  carriages  and  wagons.  Spokes  for 
wheels  are  made  of  hickory  because  of  its  tough- 
ness, flexibility,  and  strength.  There  is  no  other 
timber  quite  so  good  for  this  purpose. 

The  shellbark  is  generally  considered  the  best  of 
hickory  trees.  It  grows  from  fifty  to  eighty  feet 
high.  The  branching  varies  according  to  the  sur- 
roundings. In  a  forest  with  other  trees  it  sends  up 
a  central  trunk  from  thirty  to  fifty  feet  high,  and 
then  branches  out  into  an  irregular  head.  In  an 
open  field,  the  solitary  tree  begins  to  branch  near 
the  ground.  The  branches  come  out  at  nearly 
right  angles  to  the  main  stem.  The  main  stem  is 
almost  always  persistent  to  the  top,  and  the  head 
of  the  tree  is  nearly  cylindrical  in  form,  with  occa- 
sional wide  gaps  between  the  branches. 

Besides  its  timber  and  fuel  value, — for  all  hickory 
wood  is  the  very  best  for  fuel,  the  shellbark  is  prized 
for  its  fruit.  The  nuts  rank  next  to  the  English 
walnut  in  food  value.  The  trees  begin  to  bear  at 
about  twenty  years  of  age,  and  continue  to  old  age. 
A  half  dozen  thrifty  trees  will  bear  all  the  nuts  a. 
family  can  use.  The  nuts  ripen  and  fall  off  after 
the  first  frosts  of  autumn.  The  outer  hull,  which 
is  jn  several  parts,  bursts  open,  setting  free  the 
brown  treasure  within,  and  the  nut  is  ready  to  crack 
and  eat. 


TREES. 


103 


Probably  no  other  grove  of  trees  would  yield  a 
larger  income  on  the  amount  invested  than  a  small 
field  of  shellbark  hickories.  When  bearing  begins, 
the  bark  peels  off  and  hangs  in  long,  loose,  vertical 
strips;  but  the  younger  trees,  which  would  have  to 
be  thinned  out,  have  smooth,  tight  bark.  The 
bodies  of  such  young  trees  are  used  for  many  pur- 
poses. They  always  command  a  high  price.  The 
nuts  also  have  a  high  standard  market  value. 

A  young  person  who  now  plants  a  small  field 
with  hickories,  will  not  regret  the  experiment  in 
after  years.  The  young  trees  do  not  bear  trans- 
planting on  account  of  the  long  tap  root.  Young 
trees  are  best  secured  by  planting  the  nuts  where 
the  trees  are  permanently  to  stand. 


CHAPTER  IV. 
INSECTS. 

Stages  in  insect  life.  Food  and  growth  of  insects.  Mimicry  and 
protective  resemblance.  Cross-fertilization  by  insects.  Destruc- 
tion of  insects.  Insects  both  friends  and  pests.  Insect  intelli- 
gence. Insecticides.  House  flies.  Weevils  in  general  The 
granary  weevil.  Grain  moths.  The  Indian-meal  moth.  How 
to  keep  out  insects.  The  Hessian  fly.  The  squash  bug. 

Unlike  most  familiar  animals,  insects  are  inter- 
esting on  account  of  the  several  stages  through 
which  they  pass.  Most  kinds  are  so  different  in 
the  different  stages  that  one  would  not  think  them 
to  be  the  same  creatures.  Who  would  believe 
that  the  slow,  creeping,  worm-like  caterpillar  would 
ever  become  a  beautiful  butterfly  with  large  wings 
to  sport  in  the  sunlight;  or  the  sluggish,  soft- 
bodied  grub  transform  into  a  lively  beetle,  with 
hard  coat  of  mail,  and  wings  and  legs  for  rapid 
locomotion?  Such,  however,  are  some  of  the  won- 
ders of  the  insect  world. 

There  are  four  stages  in  the  life  of  the  highest 
orders  of  insects — egg,  larva,  pupa,  and  adult. 
Some  of  the  lower  orders  do  not  pass  through  all 
these  stages,  but,  as  the  young  hatch  from  the  egg, 
they  resemble  the  adult  except  in  size  and  the  pos- 
session of  wings.  In  a  few  species,  the  young  are 

104 


INSECTS. 


105 


brought  forth  alive.  Two  of  the  four  stages  are 
active  and  two  are  dormant.  The  larva  and  adult 
are  active  stages,  the  egg  and  pupa  are  dormant. 
Since  the  good  or  harm  an  insect  does  is  in  its 
eating,  it  is  essential  to  find  in  what  stage  the  most 
eating  is  done.  In  other  words,  its  habits  and  life 
history  must  be  learned. 

Most    moths    and   butterflies   eat   an   enormous 
amount  in  the  larva,  or  caterpillar  stage,  but  only 


CABBAGE   BUTTERFLY,    CATERPILLAR,    AND   CHRYSALIS. 

sip  a  little  honey  occasionally  in  the  adult  stage. 
Some  beetles  do  as  much  eating  in  the  adult  as 
they  do  in  the  grub  stage,  but  the  food  generally  is 
of  a  different  character.  The  Colorado  potato 
beetle  lives  on  the  potato  plant  during  all  its 
stages,  the  larva  and  adult  both  eating  the  leaves; 
while  the  cabbage  butterfly  lives  on  the  cabbage 
leaf  only  in  the  larva  stage,  the  adult  flying  in  the 


106  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

air,  now  and  then  tasting  the  sweets  of  blossoms 
wherever  they  may  be  found. 

The  larva  stage  is  the  one  in  which  growth  takes 
place.  A  caterpillar,  for  instance,  hatches  from 
the  egg  a  very  small  worm-like  creature.  This  eats 
for  a  few  weeks  or  months,  growing  all  the  time, 
then  enters  the  pupa,  or  dormant  stage,  after  which 
no  growth  in  size  takes  place.  It  eats  during  the 
worm  stage  not  only  for  growth,  but  also  to  lay  up 
stores  of  fat  and  other  material  for  future  use. 
During  the  dormant  stage,  this  supply  is  changed, 
elaborated,  and  built  into  the  organs  of  the  adult 
insect. 

Insects  may  be  classed  as  soft-bodied  animals; 
that  is,  they  have  no  inside  bony  skeleton,  but  are 
provided  with  a  more  or  less  hard  outer  skeleton. 
With  many,  it  is  a  mere  skin.  As  growth  takes 
place  they  find  this  outside  skin,  or  skeleton,  grow 
too  small,  and  change  it  from  time  to  time  for  a 
new  and  larger  one.  This  process  is  called  moult- 
ing, and  has  an  analogy  among  many  other  animals. 

Since  no  growth  takes  place  in  the  adult  stage, 
some  insects  take  but  little  food  during  that  time- 
only  enough  to  repair  waste  of  tissue  and  develop 
eggs.  Some  eat  as  voraciously  during  the  adult 
stage  as  they  do  in  the  larva  stage.  In  a  few  cases 
the  adults  eat  nothing  at  all,  and  hence  have  no 
digestive  organs.  The  May  fly  lives  only  a  day  as 
an  adult,  but  three  years  in  the  aquatic,  or  larva, 
stage.  It  eats  enough  during  its  long  period  of 


INSECTS. 


107 


early  life  to  supply  sufficient  strength  for  the  very 
short  adult  period.  Living  for  so  short  a  period, 
it  has  no  time  for  eating.  A  few  hours  are  spent 
flitting  in  the  bright  sunshine,  the  eggs  are  laid  in 
the  water,  and  its  round  of  life  is  complete. 

INSECT   FOOD   AND    GROWTH. 

Insects  feed  upon  both  animal  and  vegetable 
matter.  Grubs  of  beetles  eat  decayed  vegetable 
matter,  such  as  rotten  wood;  maggots  of  flies  eat 


CECROPIA    MOTH. 


decayed  flesh;  caterpillars  eat  leaves;  plant  lice  and 
squash  bugs  suck  the  juices  from  plants;  dragon 
flies  catch  and  eat  other  insects;  and  many  kinds 


108  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

eat  almost  anything  that  they  can  lay  hold  of. 
Ants  probably  display  the  greatest  amount  of  intel- 
ligence in  securing  food.  They  have  what  are 
known  as  "ants'  cows"  and  milk  them.  The 
so-called  cows  are  plant  lice  from  which  they 
secure  a  sweetish  substance  called  honey  dew. 
They  not  only  get  it  from  plant  lice  while  they  are 
on  plants,  but  they  also  take  them  to  their  homes 
and  keep  them  much  the  same  as  a  farmer  does 
his  cows. 

The  main  function  of  the  adult  female  insect  is 
to  lay  eggs,  and  generally  after  this  act  is  accom- 
plished, she  dies.  Insects  lay  a  great  many  eggs; 
some,  many  thousands.  This  is  very  necessary  to 
preserve  the  species,  for  they  are  incessantly 
preyed  upon  by  birds  and  other  animals.  Only 
one  or  two  of  every  thousand  ever  come  to 
maturity. 

MIMICRY   AND    PROTECTIVE  RESEMBLANCE. 

Insects  have  so  many  enemies  that  they  have 
acquired  habits  and  devices  by  means  of  which  to 
escape  destruction.  Eggs  are  frequently  the  color 
of  the  leaves  upon  which  they  are  laid,  or  they  are 
stuck  to  the  under  side  of  leaves  to  escape  detec- 
tion. The  eggs,  as  well  as  the  caterpillars  of  the 
cabbage  butterfly,  are  so  nearly  of  the  green  of  the 
cabbage  leaf  that  only  the  closest  search  can  reveal 
them.  The  wings  of  some  adult  insects  are  so 
nearly  like  certain  leaves  in  form  and  color  that 


INSECTS.  109 

the  creatures  make  themselves  appear  to  be  a  part 
of  the  stem  upon  which  they  alight.  The  insect 
known  as  the  "walking-stick"  so  resembles  a  dead 
brown  twig  that  it  would  be  taken  for  such  when 
at  rest  on  a  tree  or  shrub.  Some  night-flying 
moths  sleep  during  the  day  attached  to  the  trunks 
of  trees,  and  so  fold  their  wings  as  almost  com- 
pletely to  resemble  the  bark  of  the  tree  upon 
which  they  rest,  and  thus  avoid  being  picked  up  by 
birds. 

Devices  for  mimicry  are  almost  as  numerous  as 
the  different  forms  of  insect  life.  Mimicry,  how- 
ever, is  not  confined  to  insects  alone,  but  is  com- 
mon to  all  classes  of  animals.  It  is  thought  that 
the  stripes  of  the  tiger  are  there  to  make  it  har- 
monize with  the  large  grass  blades  among  which  it 
lurks.  In  this  case,  perhaps,  the  resemblance  is 
not  to  conceal  the  tiger  from  danger,  but  that  his 
prey  will  approach  near  without  seeing  him. 

Scientists  have  found  that  most  plants  do  better 
when  the  pollen  of  one  falls  upon  the  blossom  of 
another  of  the  same  Jkind  than  when  the  pollen 
falls  upon  the  same  blossom  that  produced  it.  The 
offspring  of  such  a  plant  does  better  than  others 
because  it  partakes  of  the  qualities  of  two  parents 
instead  of  those  of  one.  A  weakness  in  one  par- 
ent may  be  compensated  by  corresponding  strength 
in  the  other.  This  method  of  pollination  is  called 
cross-fertilization.  Plants  in  which  the  pollen  falls 
upon  the.  blossom  that  produced  it  soon  become 


110  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

weak  and  abnormal.  Weakness  and  deformity  are 
transmitted  from  generation  to  generation,  till  the 
plant  is  no  longer  able  to  cope  with  others  in  the 
struggle  of  life  and  thus  dies  and  gives  place  to 
stronger  forms. 

CROSS-FERTILIZATION    BY    INSECTS. 

Nature  is  very  careful  to  secure  cross-fertiliza- 
tion in  plants.  The  visits  of  insects  to  the  blos- 
soms to  secure  the  nectar  that  they  find  there  is 
the  greatest  means  by  which  cross-fertilization  is 
accomplished.  To  secure  the  carrying  of  pollen, 
plants  have  to  pay  for  it  by  expending  extra 
strength  in  producing  pleasant  odors,  sweet  nectar, 
bright-colored  blossoms,  and  such  attractive  things. 
Insects  would  not  carry  pollen  from  one  blossom  to 
another  were  there  not  some  reward  for  their  doing 
it.  Odor  and  color  are  probably  guides  to  the 
sweets  held  by  the  blossoms.  In  securing  nectar 
from  the  blossom,  the  insect  unconsciously  rakes  off 
some  pollen  on  his  legs  and  body,  and  carries  it  to 
another  blossom,  thus  accomplishing  the  desired 
result. 

It  must  be  remembered,  however,  that  the  pollen 
of  one  blossom  will  do  no  good  upon  the  blossom 
of  a  different  kind  of  plant.  For  instance,  the  pol- 
len from  an  apple  blossom  carried  by  a  bee  to  a 
pea  blossom  would  not  produce  apples  on  the  pea 
vine.  Nature,  again,  has  so  ordered  it  that  insects 
visit  only  one  kind  of  plant  while  it  blossoms,  and 


INSECTS. 


Ill 


do  not  wander  aimlessly  from  one'kind  to  another. 
When  apple  trees  are  in  bloom,  bees,  for  example, 
feed  upon  apple  blossoms;  when  catnip  is  in  bloom, 
they  teed  upon  catnip  blossoms.  When  white 
clover  is  out,  all  honey  made  in  the  hive  during 
that  period  is  "white  clover  honey." 

Wrhite  blossoms  that  are  insect-fertilized  come 


""• 


HOW  INSECTS   CARRY   POLLEN. 

out  at  night;  colored  blossoms  come  out  during 
the  day.  So  some  insects  fly  by  day,  and  some  by 
night.  Certain  insects  fly  by  night  because  certain 
plants  bloom  then;  or,  the  plants  bloom  then  be- 
cause certain  insects  fly  by  night. 

Tubular  blossoms  conceal  nectar  deep  down 
their  tubes  at  their  bases,  out  of  the  reach  of  most 
insects;  but  some  moths  and  butterflies  have  for 


112  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

tongues  or  probosces  long  sucking  tubes  by  means 
of  which  they  are  able  to  reach  it.  There  is  mar- 
vellous adaptation  in  the  forms  of  blossoms  and 
the  structure  of  insects  to  secure  cross-pollination 
among  plants.  Some  of  the  most  useful  farm  and 
garden  plants  depend  upon  insects  to  carry  pollen 
from  plant  to  plant.  If  it  were  not  for  the  large 
bumble-bee,  seed  would  not  mature  in  red  clover. 
The  common  honeybee  carries  pollen  for  the 
white  clover.  We  are  indebted  to  the  same  hum- 
ming, busy  creature  for  abundant  crops  of  apples 
and  many  other  useful  fruits.  An  apple  orchard 
in  full  bloom  fairly  hums  with  the  music  of  the  busy 
honeybee.  Care  should  be  taken  in  spraying  fruit 
trees  not  to  kill  any  of  these  creatures,  for  they 
are  as  necessary  to  a  full  harvest  of  fruit  as  soil, 
rain,  or  sunshine. 

THE    DESTRUCTION    OF   INSECTS. 

Birds  and  other  animals  annually  destroy  mil- 
lions of  insects  in  their  different  forms;  insects  also 
kill  each  other.  Otherwise,  they  would  increase  to 
such  an  extent  that  no  other  animate  beings  could 
exist  upon  the  earth.  This  is  a  well-known  fact 
through  the  whole  animal  kingdom:  mammals  eat 
mammals;  birds  eat  birds;  fish  eat  fish.  Some- 
times the  parent  will  eat  its  own  offspring.  It 
seems  cruel,  but  it  is,  nevertheless,  a  fact,  and  is, 
no  doubt,  necessary  to  preserve  the  balance  ot 
power  and  numbers  among  animals. 


INSECTS.  113 

Some  insects,  such  as  lice  and  flies,  make  a  living 
by  sucking  blood  out  of  other  animals.  Such 
creatures  are  called  parasites^  Insects,  too,  have 
parasites  that  either  suck  or  eat  away  their  vitality. 
Many  ground  beetles  are  literally  covered  with  lice 
which  can  easily  be  seen  with  the  naked  eye. 
The  common  house-fly  has  a  similar  enemy,  also  a 
fungus  growth  that  carries  off  large  numbers  of 
them  toward  the  close  of  summer. 

The  ichneumon  fly  probably  does  as  much,  or 
more  damage  to  insect  life  than  does  any  other 
creature.  It  is  provided  with  organs  by  means  of 
which  it  pierces  holes  in  the  bodies  of  caterpillars 
and  deposits  its  eggs  therein.  These  eggs  soon 
hatch  and  the  young  ichneumons  slowly  but  gradu- 
ally eat  away  the  internal  soft  parts  of  their  host. 
The  caterpillar  eats  voraciously  to  supply  the 
waste,  but  to  no  effect.  When  the  ichneumons  are 
ready  to  come  out  into  the  world  to  lead  a  winged 
life,  they  finally  eat  the  vital  organs  of  the  cater- 
pillar, leaving  nothing  but  the  empty  outer  shell. 
A  similar  fate  overtakes  large  numbers  of  army 
worms  and  grasshoppers. 

A  large  kind  of  ichneumon  has  piercing  —  or 
rather,  drilling  organs  several  inches  long.  With 
these  it  is  able  to  drill  holes  deep  into  the  trunks 
of  trees  to  the  burrows  of  wood-boring  grubs,  upon 
which  the  young  feed.  It  can  be  safely  said  that 
ichneumon  flies  help  to  keep  down  the  numbers  of 
injurious  insects,  and  are  therefore  man's  friends. 


114 


LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


All  forms  and  stages  of  insects  are  the  prey  of 
predatory  insects.  Eggs,  larvae,  pupae,  and  adults, 
fall  as  victims.  The  dragon  fly  has  already  been 

spoken  of.  Be- 
ing  rapid  of 
flight  and  con- 
tinually on  the 
wing, large 
numbers  of 
small -winged  insects  are 


THE 
DRAGON   FLY. 


taken  by  it,  and  thus  the  air 
about  streams  and  swamps  is 
less  infested  than  it  other- 
wise would  be.  Beetles  not  only  eat  eggs  and  low 
forms  of  insect  life  in  the  ground,  but  chase  higher 
forms  over  rocks  and  up  trees.  The  tiger  beetle  is 
very  useful  in  this  respect.  Some  wasps,  also,  kill 
other  insects. 

INSECT   INTELLIGENCE. 

Although  small  in  size,  and  comparatively  low 
in  the  scale  of  animal  life,  some  of  the  higher  orders 
of  insects  display  an  unusual  amount  of  intelli- 
gence, skill  and  constructive  ability.  The  ant,  liv- 
ing a  social  community  life,  shows  in  many  ways  a 
marked  degree  of  intelligence.  The  honeybee  is 
famous  for  constructive  skill  in  building  its 
geometric  cells;  it  also  shows  foresight  in  laying 
up  stores  of  honey  for  winter  use.  Paper  wasps 
not  only  produce  a  fair  quality  of  paper,  but  also 


INSECTS.  115 

skillfully  build  it  into  serviceable  houses.  The  mud 
wasp  is  a  mason  who  knows  his  trade  well,  andean 
build  a  more  beautiful  and  complex  house  than 
any  beaver  or  bird  with  the  same  material. 

If  any  insects  can  be  called  domestic,  bees  and 
silk  moths  are  truly  such.  Honey  of  bees  is  not 
only  pleasant  to  the  taste  but  it  also  has  a  high 
food  value.  It  is  a  common  article  of  diet  at  all 
times  of  the  year,  and  its  commercial  value  is  of 
no  small  importance.  The  caterpillar  of  the  silk 
moth  spins  material  that  is  worn  in  some  form  or 
other  by  nearly  all  of  the  human  race.  Silk  is  not 
only  used  for  clothing  but  is  woven  into  fabrics  for 
almost  numberless  purposes.  The  silk  worm  does 
not  thrive  well  in  the  United  States,  yet  the  silk 
trade  is  very  extensive.  The  combined  silk  indus- 
tries of  the4world  amount  to  hundreds  of  millions 
of  dollars.  It  seems  almost  impossible  that  so 
small  an  insect  could  be  of  such  service  to  human 
beings. 

INSECTICIDES. 

Different  substances  are  used  to  kill  insect  pests 
of  the  farm  and  garden,  but  certain  underlying 
general  principles  should  govern  the  intelligent  use 
of  all  of  them.  Chickens,  as  well  as  other  birds, 
both  wild  and  domestic,  like  to  wallow  in  dust. 
They  do  it  to  kill  the  bird  lice  on  them.  Insects 
breathe  by  means  of  small  tubes  arranged  along 
the  sides  of  the  body.  These  tubes,  or  breathing 


116  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

pores,  are  called  spiracles.  The  spiracles  are  so 
small  that  dust  stops  them  up  and  breathing  can- 
not take  place.  Thus  the  insects  die  in  the  dust 
bath.  When  infested  with  lice,  birds  will  take  a 
dust  bath  in  any  kind  of  dry  earth.  Domestic 
birds  prefer  ashes  when  they  are  to  be  had,  and 
will  wallow  in  them  in  preference  to  dry  earth. 
Ashes  act  as  dust  to  stop  up  the  breathing  pores  of 
insects,  and  the  alkaline  properties  attack  the  tissue, 
making  the  destruction  doubly  sure.  Man  has 
copied  from  nature  here  and  uses  several  kinds  of 
dust  to  kill  insects  with.  Ordinary  road  dust  is 
often  used.  Lime  and  ashes  are  both  good,  and 
besides  are  excellent  food  for  the  plants  when 
washed  into  the  soil. 

Poisons,  such  as  Paris  green,  London  purple, 
and  sulphate  of  copper  are  often  sprayed  upon 
plants  infested  with  insects.  The  insects  eat  the 
leaves,  take  the  chemicals  into  the  system,  and  die 
by  poisoning. 

Kerosene,  carbolic  acid,  and  similar  substances 
are  used  because  of  their  strong  power  to  attack 
and  destroy  animal  tissue.  They  literally  blister 
or  burn  insects  to  death.  A  mixture  of  kerosene 
and  soap,  or  soap  alone,  may  be  used  with  similar 
results.  Soap  is  very  good  for  the  soil,  too. 
There  are  three  general  principles  then,  in  killing 
insects — stopping  up  the  breathing  pores,  poison- 
ing, and  burning  or  blistering  the  tissues. 

Large    worms,   or    caterpillars,   are    sometimes 


INSECTS.  117 

picked  off  by  hand  and  killed,  when  only  a  few 
plants  are  infested;  but  the  process  is  very  slow 
and  uncertain  for  a  large  field. 

SOME  OF  OUR  COMMON   INSECT   PESTS. — HOUSE  FLIES. 

The  house  fly  is  one  of  the  most  common  and 
familiar  of  all  insects,  and  needs  but  little  descrip- 
tion. It  belongs  to  the  order  of  two-winged  (dip- 
terous) insects.  There  are  four  stages  in  its 
life-history — egg,  larva,  pupa,  and  adult.  The 
larva  is  a  small,  worm-like,  white  maggot,  and 
differs  very  much  in  form  and  habit  from  the  adult. 
Maggots  have  mouth  parts  fitted  for  eating  solid 
substances,  while  adult  flies  have  them  fitted  for 
sucking  liquids. 

Flies  breed  in  filth  and  in  decaying  animal  and 
vegetable  matter,  especially  the  former,  or  a  mix- 
ture of  both.  So  the  presence  and  number  of  flies 
depend  upon  the  amount  of  decaying  organic  mat- 
ter in  a  neighborhood — governed,  of  course,  by  the 
time  of  year  or  by  the  temperature.  They  breed  in 
nearly  all  parts  of  the  world,  but  do  so  most  abun- 
dantly in"  warm  countries. 

After  eggs  have  been  laid  in  filth  of  any  kind,  it 
takes  but  a  few  hours  for  them  to  hatch.  The 
maggots  eat  for  a  few  days,  molt,  or  change  their 
skin,  twice  during  the  time  and  then  go  into  the 
pupa,  or  resting  stage.  The  pupa  stage  lasts 
about  five  days.  So  it  is  less  than  two  weeks  from 
the  time  that  eggs  are  laid  till  adults  come  forth. 


118  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

An  individual  female  fly  lays  about  a  hundred 
eggs.  From  this  it  can  be  seen  that  a  single  fly 
could  give  rise  to  many  millions  during  a  single 
summer. 

It  cannot  be  said  that  house  flies  are  injurious; 
on  the  other  hand,  they  do  a  great  amount  of  good 
in  destroying  decaying  organic  matter.  They  are 
however,  very  troublesome  to  both  man  and  beast. 
It  is  believed  by  some  that  germs  of  disease  attach 
themselves  to  the  bodies  of  flies  and  are  thus  car- 
ried from  place  to  place.  The  truth  of  this  theory 
is  possible,  tenable,  and,  indeed,  highly  probable; 
for  flies  are  a  common  nuisance  in  sick  rooms,  and 
germs  of  disease  adhering  to  them  could  be  carried 
to,  and  infect,  another  person  as  easily  as  they 
could  by  the  body  or  clothing  of  a  human  being. 

Different  remedies  are  proposed.  Garbage 
about  the  house  should  be  quickly  and  carefully 
disposed  of.  Thorough  cleanliness  in  the  house, 
and  careful  screening  of  doors  and  windows  will 
keep  them  out  to  a  large  extent.  Cleanliness  here 
implies  that  no  sweet  substances  or  food  be  left 
exposed,  for  they  attract  flies  in  larger  numbers 
than  almost  anything  else.  They  congregate 
wherever  there  is  anything  for  them  to  eat  or  to 
lay  their  eggs  in. 

A  stable  in  which  horses  are  kept  will  breed 
enough  flies  for  a  whole  neighborhood.  Stables 
should  be  swept  clean  daily  and  the  refuse  matter 
carted  away  to  the  fields  and  plowed  under,  or  put 


INSECTS.  119 

into  a  tight  tank  and  sprinkled  with  kerosene. 
Chloride  of  lime  will  also  kill  maggots,  but  it  is  too 
expensive  to  be  practicable. 

Flies  have  several  natural  enemies.  They  are 
subject  to  disease,  they  are  picked  up  by  birds,  and, 
in  the  larva  forms,  are  eaten  by  beetles;  but  they 
breed  so  fast  that  the  effect  of  this  destruction  is 
seldom  noticed.  The  only  true  and  practical 
remedy  for  the  nuisance  they  become  lies  in  the 
combined  efforts  for  cleanliness  of  every  one  own- 
ing stables,  dwellings,  or  other  buildings,  in  or  about 
which  decaying  organic  matter  may  accumulate. 

WEEVILS    IN    GENERAL. 

Under  the  head  of  weevil  all  those  insects  may 
be  included  that  injure  stored  grain.  There  are 
many  kinds  of  them,  so  only  the  most  general 
description  will  be  here  given. 

Vegetables  and  fruits  containing  a  large  percen- 
tage of  water  can  be  kept  in  store  only  a  few 
months.  Water  is  very  conducive  to  decay,  but 
the  so-called  grains  contain  such  a  small  percen- 
tage of  water  that  they  will  keep  for  years  in  dry 
places  without  change.  Owing  to  the  small 
amount  of  water  and  the  large  amount  of  solid  food 
in  grains,  they  have  become  world-wide  staples  of 
consumption.  Being  so  condensed  in  bulk,  they 
can  be  shipped  very  long  distances  with  profit,  and 
people  of  countries  not  producing  them  are  able  to 
secure  supplies  almost  as  cheaply  as  if  they  were 


120  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

native  to  their  own  soil.  The  United  States 
receives  rice  from  China,  and,  in  turn,  sends  wheat 
and  corn  to  other  countries.  Countries  and  sec- 
tions of  countries  are  able  to  tide  over  years  of 
scarcity  and  famine  for  the  same  reason. 

Although  grains  are  rich  in  food  value,  and  have 
such  good  keeping  qualities  as  far  as  decay  is  con- 
cerned, they  are  subject  to  injury  by  several  kinds 
of  insects,  all  popularly  known  as  "weevils."  These 
are  very  small  insects,  and  hence  can  easily  infest 
a  quantity  of  grain  without  being  discovered  until 
a  considerable  amount  of  damage  has  been  done. 
Not  only  is  there  a  loss  in  weight,  but  the  insects' 
bodies  and  excreta  make  it  unfit  for  use  as  food. 
Some  kinds  destroy  the  germs  of  the  seed  so  that 
they  will  not  grow  when  planted,  whence  there 
results  a  diminution  of  the  crop. 

Insect  injuries  to  ripened  and  stored  grains 
amount  to  many  millions  of  dollars  annually  in  a 
single  State.  In  some  cases  nearly  half  of  the 
corn  is  destroyed  by  them.  The  annual  loss  in 
the  whole  United  States  probably  amounts,  on  an 
average,  to  nearly  a  hundred  million  dollars. 

Heat  and  dampness  are  conditions  favoring  the 
increase  of  such  insects.  Heat  helps  the  eggs  to 
hatch.  Dampness  renders  the  grains  soft,  so 
that  they  can  be  easily  eaten.  The  husks  of  grain 
being  primarily  for  protection,  the  husked  varieties 
are  subject  to  greater  ravages  than  those  from 
which  the  husks  have  not  been  removed. 


INSECTS. 


121 


Many  different  articles  of  food  are  now  manufac- 
tured from  grain  and  put  up  in  packages.  If  such 
foods  are  made  of  uninfested  stock  and  sealed 
immediately  in  insect-tight  cases,  the  articles  can 
be  kept  for  a  long  time.  All  insects  hatch  from 


WOOLLY   APHIS   OF   THE   APPLE. 

a,  agamic  female ;  b,  larval  louse ;  c ,  pupa ;  d,  winged  female  (with 
enlarged  antenna  above.) 


eggs;  so,  if  the  box  containing  the  food  is  sealed 
tightly  with  paper,  or  similar  material,  so  that  the 
adult  cannot  lay  its  eggs  in  it,  none  will  hatch  and 
the  food  will  be  safe.  Many  such  articles  are  now 
put  up  in  small  pasteboard  boxes  and  carefully 
sealed  over  with  a  thin  covering  of  paper. 


122  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


THE   GRANARY   WEEVIL. 

The  granary  weevil  is  a  small  beetle  which  has 
been  known  for  centuries  to  injure  stored  grain. 
The  adult  insect  is  about  an  eighth  of  an  inch  in 
length  and  brown  in  color.  The  female  punctures 
the  grains  of  wheat  with  her  snout  and  lays  her 
eggs  in  the  cavities.  When  the  eggs  hatch,  the 
larvae  devour  the  mealy  interior  and  then  undergo 
their  transformation.  In  the  small  cereals  a  single 
grain  furnishes  a  house  for  but  one  larva;  but  in 
the  larger  kinds,  such  as  Indian  corn,  a  kernel 
furnishes  a  home  for  several  individuals. 

The  adult  beetles,  as  well  as  the  larvae,  eat  the 
grain.  They  are  quite  prolific  and  will  breed  sev- 
eral generations  during  a  year.  One  pair  may 
give  rise  to  several  thousand  individuals  annually. 

GRAIN  MOTHS. 

These  small  moths  infest  all  kinds  of  grain,  and 
are  destructive  in  fields  as  well  as  in  bins,  because 
of  the  adult's'  power  of  flight.  The  caterpillars  do 
the  damage.  After  hatching  from  the  eggs,  they 
burrow  into  the  grain  and  eat  out  the  starchy  mat- 
ter. They  soon  mature,  spin  silken  cocoons,  enter 
the  pupa  stage,  and  transform  into  adult  moths — to 
pass  again  through  the  cycle  of  life.  They  do 
more  damage  in  the  Southern  than  in  the  North- 
ern States. 


INSECTS.  123 

THE    INDIAN-MEAL  MOTH. 

Another  moth,  known  as  the  Indian-meal  moth, 
because  its  caterpillar  infests  the  meal  of  Indian 
corn,  is  very  common  in  many  parts  of  the  United 
States. 

It  is  a  well-known  fact  with  those  using  corn 
meal  that  it  will  not  keep  long  in  summer,  but 
becomes  stringy.  This  stringy  substance  is  caused 
by  the  small  caterpillars  of  this  insect  spinning 
large  quantities  of  silken  threads,  to  which  the  par- 
ticles of  meal  adhere.  They  also  deposit  a  great 
amount  of  excrement,  which  makes  the  meal  unfit 
for  human  consumption.  No  amount  of  sifting 
will  thoroughly  clean  it. 

There  are  also  many  other  moths  and  beetles 
that  damage  flour  and  grain,  but  their  habits  are  so 
similar  to  the  ones  already  given  that  a  descrip- 
tion here  is  not  necessary. 

HOW   TO    KEEP    OUT    INSECTS. 

Granaries,  bins,  and  storehouses  for  grain  should 
be  lined  with  tight-fitting  boards,  then  painted  or 
whitewashed  to  stop  up  as  many  cracks  as  possible. 
After  removing  the  grain  at  the  end  of  each  sea- 
son, they  should  be  carefully  swept,  cleaned,  and 
repainted,  or  whitewashed.  No  crevices  should 
be  left  as  lurking  places  for  insects.  Doors  should 
be  tight-fitting,  and  other  openings  carefully 
screened.  Thorough  cleanliness  will  go  far  to 


124  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

keep  down  the  ravages  of  insects.  Grain  should 
be  harvested  and  threshed  as  soon  as  possible  to 
prevent  the  winged  forms  of  insects  from  infesting 
it  in  the  fields. 

For  stored  grains,  bi-sulphide  of  carbon  seems  to 
be  the  best  and  most  practical  insecticide.  Bi-sul- 
phide of  carbon  is  a  liquid  with  a  strong,  disagree- 
able odor.  It  vaporizes  readily  in  the  free  air,  is 
highly  inflammable,  and  a  powerful  poison.  It  is 
very  effective  in  killing  insects,  but  it  does  not 
injure  the  grain.  The  liquid  can  be  placed  in 
dishes  above  the  grain  and  allowed  to  vaporize. 
The  vapor  is  heavier  than  air  and  soon  sinks 
through  the  mass  of  grain  to  the  bottom  of  the 
bin,  killing  all  vermin  therein.  The  liquid  is  put 
up  in  tin  cans,  is  cheap,  and  easy  to  handle. 

THE    HESSIAN    FLY. 

Besides  being  injured  by  weevil  in  the  bin,  wheat 
is  also  subject  to  attack  in  the  field  by  a  still  more 
formidable  enemy,  known  as  the  Hessian  fly.  It  is 
held  by  some  that  this  pest  was  introduced  into  the 
United  States  during  the  Revolution  by  the  Hes- 
sian troops.  It  began  its  ravages  in  the  vicinity  of 
their  landing,  and  was  probably  brought  over  in 
straw,  which  they  used  for  bedding.  The  first 
injuries  were  noticed  in  1779. 

There  is  an  annual  loss  in  the  United  States  of 
about  fifty  million  bushels  of  wheat,  due  to  the 
ravages  of  this  insect.  In  some  localities  there  is 


INSECTS.  125 

a  loss  of  from  one-half  to  an  entire  crop.  The 
Hessian  fly  is  a  wheat  insect,  but  it  will  also  breed 
in  a  few  other  grains. 

The  adult  insect  is  a  small  fly  about  one-eighth  of 
an  inch  long,  and  dark  in  color.  Like  all  flies,  it 
passes  through  four  distinct  stages — egg,  larva, 
pupa,  and  adult.  The  pupa  stage  for  this  fly  is 
known  as  the  "flaxseed  stage,"  owing  to  its  resem- 
blance to  that  seed. 

The  second,  or  maggot,  stage  is  the  one  that 
does  the  damage.  Eggs  are  laid  by  the  adult  on 
the  leaves  or  stems  of  wheat.  They  hatch  in  a  few 
days,  and  the  white  maggots  eat  the  tissue  and 
suck  the  juices  from  the  stalks.  Sometimes  their 
injuries  cause  enlargements  to  grow  on  the  stems 
at  the  point  of  attack.  If  the  injury  is  great,  the 
plant  falls  to  the  ground. 

Most  wheat  plants  respond  to  the  injury  by  send- 
ing up  new, shoots;  but  these,  in  turn,  are  generally 
infested,  so  that  only  a  partial  crop  is  the  result. 
Hardy  varieties,  that  is,  those  with  hard,  flinty 
stems,  sustain  the  least  injury  because  the  straws 
.do  not  bend  easily  at  the  injured  points. 

No  remedy  has  been  found  to  save  a  field  when 
once  infested  with  the  Hessian  fly,  but  careful 
measures  may  save  succeeding  crops.  Since  the 
flies  work  on  the  lower  joints  of  the  stem,  they 
may  be  left  in  the  field  by  cutting  the  wheat  high. 
If  the  stubble  is  then  burned,  they  may  be  destroyed. 
Another  effective  measure  is  to  plow  under  the 


126  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

infested  stubble  and  plant  the  field  with  some 
other  crop  the  next  year.  Late  sowing  of  winter 
wheat  will  often  prevent  the  crop  from  becoming 
infested,  because  the  adult  flies  perish  on  the 
approach  of  cold  weather  and  hence  no  eggs  are 
laid  on  the  young  plants.  This  method  is  not 
always  practicable,  because  wheat  sown  too  late  is 
in  danger  of  being  winter-killed.  Probably  the 
surest  method  of  destroying  the  pest  lies  in  the 
rotation  of  crops. 

It  must  be  remembered,  however,  that,  after  all 
precautions  have  been  taken,  a  neighbor's  brood 
may  easily  fly  over  and  defeat  your  precautions. 

THE   SQUASH-BUG. 

By  a  great  many  people  all  insects  are  called 
"bugs."  It  is  right  to  say  that  all  bugs  are  insects, 
but  not  that  all  insects  are  bugs,  any  more  than  it 
would  be  to  say  that  all  birds  are  thrushes.  One 
order  of  insects  may  be  called  bugs.  It  is  dis- 
tinct from  all  the  other  orders,  and  may  be  known 
in  several  ways.  The  main  characteristic  is  the 
mouth,  which  is  fitted  for  piercing  the  tissues 
of  plants  and  sucking  their  juices.  Many  bugs 
undergo  an  incomplete  metamorphosis;  that  is, 
they  have  no  distinct  pupa  stage,  but  the  insects 
hatch  from  the  eggs  and  closely  resemble  the 
adults,  with  the  exception  of  wings. 

The  stage  between  the  egg  and  the  adult  is  com- 
monly called  the  nymph  stage.  This  is  the  stage  in 


INSECTS. 


127 


which  growth  in  size  takes  place.  The  nymph 
molts,  or  sheds  its  skin,  several  times  to  allow  its 
body  to  grow.  When  the  adult  stage  is  reached 
wings  appear,  and  growth  in  size  stops.  The  adult 
eats  in  order  to  develop  eggs  for  a  new  generation. 
The  common  squash-bug  is  so  called  because  it 
is  the  best  known  of  all  insects  that  infest  pump- 


SQUASH   VINE   BORER. 

a,  male  moth ;    b,  female ;    c,  eggs  on  a  bit  of  squash  stem ;    d,  full- 
grown  larva  in  situ  in  vine;  e,  pupa ;f,  pupal  cell. 

kins  and  squashes.  It  is  a  true  bug,  having  highly 
developed  piercing  and  sucking  mouth-parts,  and 
undergoing  incomplete  metamorphosis.  Its  near 
relatives  are  bed-bugs,  plant-lice,  animal-lice,  scale- 
insects,  cicada,  and  a  host  of  other  pernicious 
insects.  It  can  truthfully  be  said  that  they  are  the 
most  despised  of  all  the  class. 


128  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

Squash-bugs  are  popularly  known  as  "stink- 
bugs,"  from  their  disagreeable  odor.  The  adult 
bug  is  about  three-fourths  of  an  inch  long,  dark- 
brown  above,  and  mottled-yellow  beneath,  the  long, 
jointed  feelers  prominent,  and  the  wings  folded 
diagonally  across  the  back. 

Eggs  of  the  squash-bug  are  generally  laid  on  the 
under  side  of  the  leaves  of  the  plant  on  which  it 
feeds.  They  are  nearly  white  when  first  laid,  but 
soon  change  to  a  dark  color.  The  eggs  hatch  in  a 
little  more  than  a  week;  the  young  nymphs  are 
dark  in  color.  They  are  green  and  black,  and  also 
assume  reddish  or  brownish  tinges  before  maturity. 

Injury  to  the  plant  is  done  by  the  insect's  piercing 
a  hole  and  sucking  the  juices.  It  attacks  not  only 
the  vines,  but  also  the  leaves  and  fruit.  The  insect 
is  more  or  less  harmful  during  its  entire  active  life. 
When  a  great  number  attack  a  plant,  the  juices 
are  soon  sucked  away  and  the  plant  is  sure  to  die. 
If  the  fruit  alone  is  infested,  development  ceases. 
It  is  not  only  the  sucking  out  of  the  juices  that 
destroys  the  plant;  but,  in  puncturing  the  holes, 
the  insects  inject  a  drop  of  liquid  which  has  a 
poisonous  effect  upon  the  plant. 

Young  plants  sustain  greater  injuries  than  older 
ones;  but  at  any  time  during  the  season  sufficient 
numbers  will  completely  destroy  a  crop.  Some- 
times the  attack  is  not  begun  till  the  fruit  is  nearly 
developed;  but  even  then  the  bugs  may  cause  it  to 
be  unfit  for  use. 


INSECTS.  129 

At  the  end  of  the  season,  or  when  the  squash- 
Lag  has  finished  eating,  it  hides  away  in  rubbish, 
among  the  dead  vines,  under  bark  and  stones,  or 
under  almost  anything  it  can  find.  It  thus  passes 
the  winter  in  hibernation,  ready  to  come  out  the 
next  summer  and  lay  eggs  for  new  generations. 

No  satisfactory  chemical  preparation  for  killing 
the  squash-bug  has  been  found.  Anything  strong 
enough  to  kill  the  insect  will  also  kill  the  plant. 
Owing  to  their  habits  of  concealment,  a  careful 
cleaning  up  of  old  vines,  and  burning,  will  destroy  a 
great  many  of  the  bugs.  It  might  also  be  said 
here  that  a  careful  raking  up  and  burning  of  all 
the  dead  plants  in  gardens  and  truck  patches 
would  help  to  keep  down  the  numbers  of  many 
injurious  insects.  Different  plants  attract  different 
insects,  so  that  a  garden  soon  becomes  a  pest- 
house-for  many  kinds . 

A  good  plan  is  to  cover  the  garden  a  few  inches 
deep  with  dry  straw,  spray  the  whole  with  a  few 
gallons  of  kerosene,  and  burn.  The  cost  of  doing 
this,  and  the  labor,  would  be  recompensed  many 
times.  It  must  be  remembered,  however,  that 
some  forms  pass  the  winter  in  the  ground  and 
would  not  be  affected  by  such  methods. 

Another,  and  probably  the  most  reliable  way  to 
keep  down  the  numbers  of  this  pest,  is  to  watch 
carefully  early  in  the  season  for  adults,  to  destroy 
them  by  hand,  and  to  cut  off  leaves,  or  portions 
of  leaves,  to  which  eggs  adhere. 


CHAPTER  V. 


BIRDS. 

The  food  of  birds.  Relation  of  birds  to  agriculture.  Utility  not  the 
only  measure  of  the  value  of  birds.  Individual  birds: — the 
woodpecker,  the  swallow,  the  meadow  lark,  quails,  sparrows, 
the  wren,  the  robin,  bluebirds,  the  bobolink. 

It  can  truthfully  be  said  that  some  things  in  the 
world  are  very  important  because  we  cannot  live 
without  them. 
The  fact  is 
that  all  things' 
have  a  place 
in  the  world,  and  con- 
tribute in  some  way 
or  another  to  make 
it  a  fit  abode  for 
man. 

Without   air   or 
water,  life  of  all  kinds 
would  soon  come  to 
an  end.     Without 
plants,  animals  would  have  nothing 
to  feed  upon.     Were  all  fishes  of 
one  kind,  some  climates  and  some 
waters  would  be  without  fish.     In 
the  cycle  of  life,  each  individual  is 
dependent  upon  its  surroundings, 
but,  in  turn,  helps  to  make  those  surroundings  fit 

for  others. 

130 


THE   KINGFISHER. 


BIRDS.  131 

It  is  not  true  that  we  could  not  live  upon  the 
earth  another  day  if  all  birds  were  killed,  but  life 
would  not  be  so  pleasant  without  them.  Farming 
and  gardening  would  not  be  so  profitable;  neither 
could  shade  and  fruit  trees  be  grown  successfully 
because  of  the  great  numbers  of  insects  that  would 
thrive  if  left  unmolested.  We  shall  study  birds, 
then,  mainly  with  reference  to  the  good  they  do  in 
killing  pernicious  and  injurious  insects. 

THE   FOOD   OF   BIRDS.  • 

Birds,  like  other  animals,  require  food.  Some 
eat  one  thing  and  some  another.  Some  live 
entirely  upon  a  vegetable  diet,  some  on  an  animal 
diet,  and  some  on  a  mixture  of  both  vegetable  and 
animal  food.  The  greatest  number  of  birds 
belongs  to  the  last  class;  that  is,  the  kind  that  eats 
both  vegetable  and  animal  food.  The  diet  of 
birds,  at  first  thought,  seems  to  be  of  little  impor- 
tance; but,  upon  careful  study,  it  is  found  to  have 
a  vital  relation  to  the  success  of  farmers  and  gar- 
deners, and  to  be  of  general  importance  to  all. 

In  studying  the  food  of  birds,  we  shall  find  out 
many  important  things  about  their  structure  and 
habits.  For  instance,  as  winter  approaches  in  our 
northern  latitude,  food  becomes  scarce.  This 
compels  some  of  our  birds  to  fly  to  warmer 
regions,  where  food  is  abundant.  Then,  again,  as 
summer  approaches,  they  come  back  to  the  fresh 
and  unoccupied  fields  where  there  is  no  lack  of 


132 


LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


food  during  warm  weather.     Hence,  the  migration 

of    birds  is  almost   wholly  dependent  upon  their 

food  supply. 

Some  birds  stay  north  during  the  cold  winter,when 

the  ground  is 
covered  with 
snow  and  ice, 
and  all  in- 
sects  are 
dead  or  hid- 
de  n  away 
in  a  dormant 
state.  Such 
birds  are 
found  to  be 
well  fitted  to 
secure  a  liv- 
ing even  dur- 
ing the  se- 
vere winter, 
though  the 
odds  seem  to 
b  e  against 
them. 

The  wood- 
pecker is  a 
good  exam- 
ple of  this 
kind.  He 

stays  north  because   his  food  is  as  easily  secured 


BIRDS.  133 

during  the  winter  as  it  is  at  any  other  season  of 
the  year. 

Woodpeckers  feed  largely  upon  those  grubs  of 
insects  which  burrow  in  the  trunks  and  branches 
of  trees.  Their  feet  are  fitted  for  clinging  to  the 
bark;  their  tails  for  supporting  them  while  at  work; 
their  long,  sharp  bills  for  pecking  holes  in  the  wood 
to  the  grubs;  and  their  slim,  barbed  tongues  for 
piercing  and  dragging  out  the  victims.  So  the 
structure  of  woodpeckers,  to  a  large  extent, 
depends  upon  the  food  they  eat. 

The  same  is  true  of  hawks  and  owls  (see  p.  135), 
which  kill  and  eat  birds  and  other  animals. 
Their  feet  are  fitted  for  catching  and  holding  their 
prey,  and  their  sharp,  curved  bills  for  cutting  and 
tearing  the  flesh.  The  structure  of  the  swallow's 
wings,  tail,  and  mouth,  is  due  to  the  fact  that  it 
lives  upon  winged  insects  and  must  catch  them  in 
mid-air. 

Birds  that  catch  fish  and  other  small  animals  in 
the  shallow  water  of  swamps  and  streams,  have 
long  legs  for  wading,  and  long  bills  and  necks  for 
reaching  deep  into  the  water.  Ducks  and  geese 
secure  their  food  in  either  deep  or  shallow  water, 
and  have  bills  especially  fitted  for  straining  out  the 
indigestible  mud  and  other  material.  So  the  list 
continues, — each  bird  having  something  peculiar 
and  interest'  ^g  about  it,  due  to  the  food  upon 
which  it  subsk  s. 


134  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


RELATION    OF    BIRDS    TO   AGRICULTURE. 

Until  recent  years,  very  little  study  of  birds  in 
their  relation  to  agriculture  has  been  made.  Now, 
however,  farming  is  reduced  to  a  scientific  basis, 
and  many  principles  have  to  be  considered  to 
make  it  a  successful  pursuit.  It  is  further  admitted 
by  all  that  insects  are  destructive  to  many  crops, 
and  that  the  reduction  of  their  numbers,  and  hold- 
ing them  in  check,  must  be  seriously  considered. 

Artificial  methods  of  insect  destruction  are  fre- 
quently expensive  and  unsatisfactory.  Often  they 
cannot  be  used  at  all;  and  the  producer  is  com- 
pelled to  stand  aside  and  see  the  results  of  his 
labor  vanish  before  his  eyes,  with  no  means  of  help. 
There  are  times,  too,  during  the  busy  summer's 
work,  when  the  farmer  feels  that  he  cannot  stop 
other  work  to  kill  insects.  So  they  are  permitted 
to  increase  till  some  valuable  crop  is  destroyed. 

Now,  the  presence  of  birds  is  a  natural  means 
for  keeping  in  check  the  harmful  ravages  of  inju- 
rious insects.  Birds  never  cease  working.  They 
rise  early  in  the  morning  and  retire  late  in  the 
evening.  All  day  long  they  pick  up  insects  of  all 
kinds,  which  they  eat  themselves  or  carry  to  their 
young 

There  are  no  holidays  with  birds.  Sunday  and 
Monday  are  alike  with  them  so  far  a  eating  is  con- 
cerned. A  farmer,  then,  may  leav  his  fields  one 
day  in  seven  and  know  that  the  insect  exter- 


BIRDS.  135 

minators  are  still  at  work,  if  he  is  friendly  to  use- 
ful birds  and  allows  them  to  live  on  his  farm 
unmolested.  It  pays  in  more  ways  than  one. 
Birds  appreciate  human  kindness  and  protection 
as  few  other  animals  do. 


THE   SCREECH  OWL. 


Birds  are  now  protected  by  law  in  many  States. 
In  some  localities,  however,  there  is  so  little 
thought  taken  of  the  law  that  it  is  not  strictly 
enforced.  It  thus  happens  that  thousands  of  our 
most  beautiful  and  useful  creatures  are  sacrificed 
wantonly,  or  for  the  table,  or  for  the  capricious 


136  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

decoration  of  women's  hats.  And  yet,  in  this 
enlightened  time,  it  does  seem  that  no  thoughtful 
woman  ought  to  consent  to  wear  any  part  of  a 
bird  as  an  ornament. 

During  the  summer  months,  the  main  diet  of 
birds  consists  of  soft-bodied  insects,  such  as  grubs 
and  caterpillars.  This  is  especially  true  of  young 
birds  in  the  nest.  Such  forms  are  more  easily 
swallowed  and  digested  than  others.  Seeds  are 
too  hard  for  their  tender  stomachs.  Adult  birds 
eat  seeds  because  they  are  able  to  digest  them. 
The  number  of  seeds,  however,  generally  falls  far 
short  of  the  number  of  insects  taken.  It  must  not 
be  forgotten,  too,  that  young,  growing  birds  require 
more  food  than  full-grown  ones,  so  the  grain  eaten 
by  them  after  they  are  able  to  shift  for  themselves 
is  fully  compensated  for  by  the  great  number  of 
insects  eaten  while  they  are  young. 

UTILITY   NOT   THE    ONLY   MEASURE    OF   THE 
VALUE    OF    BIRDS. 

Young  birds  in  the  nest  should,  therefore,  be 
looked  upon  not  only  as  interesting  subjects  for 
care  and  study,  but  as  the  most  useful  of  all  wild 
creatures  that  live  on  a  farm.  It  is  a  well  known 
fact  that  only  a  small  part  of  the  birds  born  ever 
arrive  at  maturity.  Before  they  are  able  to  fly 
from  the  nest,  young  birds  are  taken  by  animals 
of  prey,  are  killed  by  lice  in  the  nest,  are  killed  by 
severe  storms,  or  they  die  of  starvation  because  of 


BIRDS.  137 

accidents  to  their  parents.  Now,  since  they  eat 
insects  almost  wholly  during  that  period,  it  is  quite 
evident  that  their  value  to  the  producer  is  very 
great,  even  though  the  surviving  adults  may  eat  a 
few  grains  of  wheat  or  corn. 


THE   BOBOLINK. 


Nor  should  the  side  of  utility  alone  be  consid- 
ered when  the  feathered  tribe  is  studied.  Birds 
are  not  only  the  most  beautiful,  but  also  the  most 
cheerful  creatures  about  a  place.  Their  beauty  of 
form  and  covering  is  unsurpassed  by  that  of  any 


138  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

other  class  of  animals.  Most  creatures  are  dumb, 
or  they  only  occasionally  utter  a  few  unmusical 
sounds.  Birds,  on  the  other  hand,  are  the  most 
musical  of  all  animate  creation,  with  the  possible 
exception  of  man.  There  are  but  few  species  that 
do  not  utter  pleasing  vocal  sounds.  Many  of  them 
pour  forth  music  of  such  volume  and  sweetness 
that  the  appreciative  ear  could  never  tire  of  listen- 
ing. 

The  songs  of  birds  are  missed  during  the  winter 
months,  but  sound  the  sweeter  when  the  wave  of 
migration  comes  pouring  over  the  North  in  spring. 
During  the  early  summer  months,  (their  mating 
season,)  their  songs  are  especially  joyful.  The 
songs  of  most  birds  are  clearest  in  the  early  morn- 
ing, but  many  kinds  sing  well  all  day  long.  A 
rural  scene  without  such  sounds  would  be  lonely 
indeed.  Fortunate  are  those  people  who  are 
privileged  to  enjoy  such  harmony. 

Our  knowledge  of  the  good  or  of  the  harm  done 
by  birds  does  not  rest  upon  general  observation 
alone.  The  United  States  Department  of  Agricul- 
ture has  carefully  examined  the  stomachs  of 
several  thousand  individual  birds.  On  an  average, 
about  75  per  cent,  of  the  contents  was  found  to 
consist  of  the  bodies  of  insects,  most  of  which  are 
destructive  to  cultivated  plants.  Some  species 
examined  were  found  to  subsist  almost  entirely 
upon  insects,  while  only  a  few  ate  more  grain  than 
other  kinds  of  food. 


BIRDS.  139 

With  such  facts  in  view  regarding  the  usefulness 
of  birds  in  keeping  down  the  numbers  ot  injurious 
insects,  the  farmer,  the  gardener,  and  the  fruit 
grower  should  combine  their  efforts  for  the  pro- 
tection of  these  valuable  little  friends. 

INDIVIDUAL   BIRDS. — THE   WOODPECKER. 

There  are  several  species  of  this  bird  in  the 
United  States.  As  the  name  implies,  it  lives  where 
wood  is  found.  Now,  trees  furnish  homes  for  many 
kinds  of  animals,  especially  insects,  which  feed 
upon  the  leaves  and  wood.  Grubs,  caterpillars, 
and  ants  eat  into  and  destroy  the  trunks  and 
branches  of  trees.  Woodpeckers  are  better  fitted 
than  any  other  birds  for  capturing  these  insects. 

Until  recently,  before  its  true  office  was  known, 
the  woodpecker  (see  p.  132),  was  held  in  contempt 
by  most  people.  They  looked  upon  it  as  a  worth- 
less creature,  going  about  amusing  itself  by  pecking 
needless  holes  in  trees,  or  drumming  upon  the 
boards  of  buildings. 

But  those  looking  carefully  into  the  matter  have 
found  that  such  holes  have  been  the  salvation  of 
the  trees  in  which  they  were  pecked.  Out  of  each 
hole  drilled  by  the  bird  a  pernicious  insect  was 
extracted  and  eaten.  In  many  cases,  of  course,  the 
trees  died, — not  because  of  the  holes  made  by  the 
birds,  but  because  the  insects  were  so  numerous. 
The  inside  of  such  trees,  when  they  are  cut  down 
and  split  open,  is  found  to  be  tunneled,  or  "honey- 


340  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

combed,"  in  every  direction  by  the  holes  made  by 
insects. 

The  writer  well  remembers  the  time  when  wood- 
peckers were  killed  in  southern  Illinois  at  all  sea- 
sons of  the  year  merely  for  the  sport  of  shooting 
them.  At  the  same  time  thousands  of  dollars' 
worth  of  trees  were  destroyed  annually  by  one 
insect  alone — the  wood-borer.  It  is  not  likely  that 
woodpeckers  could  have  entirely  eradicated  the 
evil;  but  they  surely  would  have  helped  greatly  in 
keeping  down  the  number  of  insects,  had  they 
been  allowed  to  breed  unmolested.  It  is  to  be 
hoped  that  these  birds  will  not  be  slaughtered 
again  for  mere  sport. 

Woodpeckers  eat  some  vegetable  food;  but  as 
most  of  it  is  of  a  wild  variety,  not  much  damage  is 
done  to  cultivated  crops.  There  is  some  doubt, 
however,  as  to  one  small  species,  known  as  the 
"sap-sucker."  This  bird  pecks  holes  into  the 
branches  of  trees  for  the  sap  which  flows  into 
them.  It  is  thought  by  some  that  he  more  than 
recompenses  for  this  bad  trait  in  capturing  insects 
attracted  by  the  sap  in  the  holes  which  he  has 
pecked.  At  least,  we  should  not  condemn  the 
whole  family  for  the  misdeeds  of  one  member. 

There  is  probably  no  place  in  which  woodpeckers 
can  do  more  good  than  in  an  orchard.  They 
should  be  induced  to  stay  there  rather  than  driven 
away.  When  a  woodpecker  is  seen  running  up  and 
•down  an  apple  tree,  pecking  vigorously  at  times; 


BIRDS. 


141 


this  does  not  mean  that  it  is  trying  to  injure  the 
tree,  but  that  it  is  clearing  the  tree  of  enemies 
lurking  in  the  wood  and  under  the  bark. 

Nor  do  woodpeckers  confine  themselves  to  trees. 
Often  they  alight  upon  the  ground  for  prey,  catch- 
ing beetles,  ants,  and  even  grasshoppers. 

Most  species  of  woodpeckers  stay  in  the  north 
the  year  round.  They  keep  us  company  when 
other  birds  have  flown  away.  They  are  the  great- 
est known  conservators  of  trees  of  all  kinds,  and 
should  be  held  in  high  esteem  by  those  who  love 
trees  and  know  their  value. 


THE  SWALLOW. 

Swallows  are 
very  much  un- 
like woodpeck- 
ers in  their 
general  struc- 
ture and  in 
their  habits.  In 
the  main,  how- 
ever, they  ac- 
complish the 
same  end; 
n  a  m  el  y,  the 
killing  of  in- 
sects. Just  as 
w  o  o  d  p  eckers 


THE   SWALLOW. 


U2  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

have  long  bills,  barbed  tongues,  strong  muscles 
of  the  head  and  neck,  easily  adjustable  toes,  and 
stiff  tail-feathers,,  to  enable  them  to  secure  insects 
from  the  trunks  and  branches  of  trees;  so  swallows 
have  large  wings,  strong  muscles  of  the  chest  for 
support  in  almost  continual  flight,  long  tails  for 
guiding,  sharp  eyes  for  seeing,  and  a  very  large 
mouth  to  enable  them  to  catch  insects  in  mid-air. 

Some  insects  lead  a  sluggish  life,  hiding  away  for 
long  periods,  and  moving  very  slowly  within  a 
small  sphere;  others  are  very  active,  flying  almost 
continually  in  the  air.  Since  different  insects  have 
different  modes  of  life,  then  those  animals  that 
prey  upon  them  must  adapt  themselves  to  certain 
conditions  in  order  to  secure  the  necessary  supply 
of  food. 

Since  some  insects  burrow  in  wood,  then  birds, 
to  secure  them,  must  be  able  to  dig  into  the  wood. 
Since  some  insects  creep  on  the  ground  among 
grass  and  weeds,  then  birds,  to  secure  those  kinds, 
must  walk  upon  the  ground,  with  their  bills  and 
eyes-  pointed  continually  downward.  Since  some 
'insects  spend  most  of  their  time  flying  in  the  air, 
the  birds  that  catch  them  must  also  fly  in  the  air. 
It  always  requires  effort  to  secure  food;  and  this 
struggle  on  the  part  of  animals  has  a  tendency  to 
change  their  structure. 

Now,  on  account  of  the  large,  strong  wings,  and 
long,  steering  tails  of  swallows,  they  are  able  to  fly 
almost  continually.  This  makes  them  especially 


BIRDS.  143 

helpful  in  ridding  the  atmosphere  of  certain  nox- 
ious and  troublesome  insects.  When  a  swallow  is 
seen  gliding  swiftly  through  the  air,  up  at  one 
moment,  down  at  another,  and  turning  a  backward 
somersault  at  another,  he  is  not  doing  it  for  the 
mere  sport  of  expert  acting.  In  every  case  it  will 
be  found  that  he  is  close  upon  the  heels  of  some 
swift-flying  insect,  and  must  needs  follow  its  devious 
course  in  order  to  catch  it.  Just  as  woodpeckers 
keep  trees  free  of  insects,  so  do  swallows  perform 
a  similar  service  for  the  atmosphere. 

It  is  a  well-known  fact  that  swallows  all  fly  south 
early  in  autumn.  This  is  very  necessary.  Living, 
as  they  do,  upon  insects  of  the  air  alone,  their  food 
supply  soon  vanishes  on  the  approach  of  cold 
weather.  They  are  then  compelled  to  seek  a 
climate  where  the  air  is  warm  enough  for  insects 
to  be  found. 

Most  swallows  are  social  in  their  habits,  and  will 
build  their  nests  in  and  about  barns  and  other 
farm  buildings,  if  allowed  to  do  so.  They  should 
be  encouraged  in  this  habit.  They  will  pay  many 
times  over  for  the  trouble  of  providing  for  them  in 
keeping  the  summer  air  around  the  premises  clear 
of  insects  troublesome  to  both  man  and  beast. 

THE   MEADOW   LARK. 

The  meadow  lark  is  distinctively  a  ground  bird. 
It  nests  on  the  ground  and  feeds  on  the  ground. 
Now  and  then  it  can  be  seen  sitting  for  a  few  min- 


144 


LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


utes  on  some  telegraph  post  or  tree,  but  it  prefers 
not  to  get  farther  away  from  the  earth  than  a 
fence-top.  Few  other  birds  spend  their  lives  so 
low  down  as  the  meadow  lark. 


THE  BLUEBIRD. 


BIRDS.  145 

From  careful  examination  it  has  been  found  that 
the  food  of  meadow  larks  is  made  up  largely  of 
insects.  Its  vegetable  diet  consists  of  a  few  grains 
of  cultivated  plants,  and  the  seeds  of  noxious 
weeds, — the  latter  almost  wholly  predominating. 
The  insects  eaten  are  mostly  beetles,  caterpillars, 
and  grasshoppers. 

Some  of  these  beetles  are  injurious  to  cultivated 
crops  and  some  are  not.  The  caterpillars  are  those 
popularly  known  as  "cut-worms,"  an  insect  most  de- 
structive to  grasses, — young  corn  especially.  Cut- 
worms are  difficult  to  kill  by  artificial  methods 
from  the  fact  that  they  spend  a  great  deal  of  their 
time  beneath  the  surface  of  the  soil.  They  come 
up  only  long  enough  to  cut  off  stalks  of  young 
grass,  which  they  drag  back  into  their  holes.  The 
destructive  work  of  grasshoppers  is  so  well  known 
that  it  needs  no  comment.  They,  too,  are  difficult 
to  handle  by  artificial  methods. 

During  the  grasshopper  season,  meadow  larks, 
as  well  as  many  other  birds,  eat  very  little  other 
food.  Female  grasshoppers  make  small  holes  in 
the  ground  and  lay  their  eggs  therein.  During 
this  process,  myriads  are  snapped  up  by  the 
meadow  larks  before  they  have  time  to  deposit 
their  eggs.  This  diminishes  the  number  that 
would  be  hatched  out  the  next  season. 

The  meadow  lark  goes  south  only  when  it  is 
compelled  to  do  so  by  severe  weather.  It  stays 
all  winter  in  portions  of  southern  Illinois,  and  in 


146  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

the  same  latitude  elsewhere.  It  is  even  successful 
in  securing  some  insects  during  this  cold  season,  as 
is  evidenced  by  the  examination  of  its  stomach. 
It  is  able  to  subsist  for  some  time  on  a  vegetable 
diet,  weed  seed  especially,  and  returns  farther 
north  very  early  in  spring. 

Meadow  larks  are  often  killed  just  for  the  sport 
of  shooting  at  them,  and  some  are  killed  for  food. 
When,  however,  the  great  value  of  these  birds  is 
known,  it  is  hoped  that  all  such  wanton  waste  will 
stop  entirely. 

The  song  of  the  meadow  lark  is  not  so  sweet  as 
that  of  the  famous  English  lark,  nor  as  that  of 
some  other  American  birds;  but  it  is  of  no  mean 
character.  Most  of  our  best  song-birds  dispense 
their  music  from  the  tops  of  shrubs  or  trees,  and 
seldom  from  the  ground  in  open  fields.  The 
meadow  lark,  however,  cheerful  at  its  work  in  its 
lowly  station,  pours  forth  happy,  whistling  notes 
all  day  long,  where  otherwise  silence  and  monotony 
would  reign. 

SOME    OTHER   BENEFICIAL   BIRDS. 

The  limits  of  this  volume  will  not  permit  a 
description  in  detail  of  the  habits  of  all  useful 
birds  in  this  section  of  the  United  States.  So  we 
must  be  content  with  a  passing  notice  of  only  a  few 
more. 

The  value  of  quails  as  insect  destroyers  has  long 
been  known  by  the  farmers  of  the  Central  States, 


BIRDS.  147 

but,  being  so  highly  prized  for  food,  they  have 
become  favorite  game  birds.  Nothing  but  the 
most  stringent  game  laws  will  ever  stop  their 
slaughter. 

Most  States  now  have  laws  which  prohibit  the 
killing  of  quails  except  for  a  few  weeks  of  each 
year.  During  those  few  weeks  of  non-protection, 
however,  they  are  shot  or  trapped  in  such  large 
numbers  that  it  is.  a  wonder  any  remain  for  the 
next  season's  breeding.  If  the  maximum  amount 
of  good  is  to  be  derived  from  these  birds,  laws 
must  be  enacted  to  prevent  their  being  killed  at 
any  season  of  the  year. 

Quails,  like  a  number  of  other  useful  birds,  eat 
some  wheat,  oats,  and  corn;  but  the  grains  are 
mostly  those  that  shatter  off  in  the  fields  and 
would  never  be  utilized.  When  undisturbed  for 
several  months,  quails  grow  very  tame,  and  will 
feed  near  dwellings,  or  bathe  in  the  dust  of  coun- 
try roads  almost  within  arm's  reach  of  the  passer- 
by. They  are  very  prolific,  and  would  soon 
increase  to  sufficient  numbers  to  do  a  vast  amount 
of  good  if  they  were  not  annually  killed  down  to 
comparatively  a  few  individuals. 

Sparrows  are  also  very  useful  birds.  In  addition 
to  the  many  noxious  insects  taken,  they  eat  large 
quantities  of  the  seeds  of  worthless  weeds.  Few 
seeds  of  useful  plants  are  eaten  by  them.  The 
much-despised  English  sparrow  probably  does 
much  more  good  than  harm.  It  does  not  drive 


148  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

other  useful  birds  away  to  such  an  extent  as  it  has 
been  accused  of.  Most  of  its  vegetable  diet  con- 
sists of  refuse  or  weed  seed.  Its  value  as  an  insect 
destroyer  during  the  summer  months  cannot  be 
questioned. 

During  the  summer  of  1900,  the  writer  watched 
a  male  and  female  English  sparrow  carry  food  to 
a  nest  of  half-grown  young.  The  food  brought 
consisted  entirely  of  cabbage  worms  (caterpillars 
of  the  cabbage  butterfly),  and  the  number  amounted 
to  an  average  of  about  fifteen  per  hour.  Now, 
taking  into  consideration  that  the  summer  day  is  a 
long  day,  and  that  all  birds  work  early  and  late, 
the  large  number  fed  to  one  nest  of  young  during 
their  helpless  period  can  easily  be  determined. 
This,  of  course,  takes  no  account  of  the  number  of 
caterpillars  eaten  by  the  parents  themselves  to  sup- 
port them  in  their  arduous  labor. 

The  house  wren,  besides  being  a  cheerful  little 
creature  about  a  house,  is  another  very  useful  bird 
at  killing  insects.  Its  food  consists  almost  entirely' 
of  insects.  Some  claim  that  it  eats  absolutely  noth- 
ing else.  It  will  build  any  place  about  dwellings 
where  it  can  find  lodgment  for  its  nest.  If  undis- 
turbed by  cats,  dogs,  or  human  beings,  the  house 
wren  will  sit  and  sing  within  four  or  five  feet  of  a 
person  without  showing  any  signs  of  fear. 

It  might  be  said  here  that  cats  are  the  worst 
enemies  of  birds.  They  no  doubt  drive  away  many 
valuable  species  that  would  otherwise  be  a  source 


BIRDS 


149 


of  pleasure  and  of  profit.  If  shade  trees,  fruit 
trees,  and  other  plants  of  the  yard  and  garden  are 
expected  to  thrive,  they  must  be  kept  free  from 
the  ravages  of  noxious  insects;  and  birds  will  do 
the  work  more  cheaply  and  with  less  injury  to  the 
plants  than  anything  else. 


THE   ROBIN. 


Another  beautiful  bird  is  the  robin.  It  eats  some 
fruit,  grain,  and  angleworms,  for  which  it  must  be 
condemned,  but  it  is  so  valuable  in  killing  harmful 
insects  that  it  more  than  pays  for  the  damage. 


150  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

The  robin  is  also  a  comparatively  tame  bird,  feed- 
ing near  dwellings  as  well  as  in  open  fields. 

Bluebirds  (see  p.  144)  are  also  very  useful  in  kill- 
ing caterpillars,  grasshoppers,  and  many  other 
injurious  insects.  During  the  grasshopper  season 
the  bluebird's  food  consists  largely  of  this  insect. 

The  bobolink  (see  p.  1 37)  is  a  bird  which  deserves 
both  praise  and  blame.  In  the  northern  part  of 
the  United  States  it  lives  almost  entirely  upon 
insects  and  weed  seed;  but,  in  the  South,  we  are 
sorry  to  say,  it  does  so  much  damage  to  rice  fields 
that  it  is  hunted  and  killed  on  every  hand. 

In  concluding  this  short  and  incomplete  discus- 
sion of  useful  birds,  a  few  random  notes  from  a  late 
popular  book  on  the  subject  will  be  given: — 

"The  goldfinch  eats  seeds  of  the  thistle." 

"The  phoebe  bird  catches  gnats  and  flies." 

"Grouse  catch  spiders  and  beetles." 

"English  sparrows  eat  bark-insects  from  trees." 

"Owls  eat  more  mice  and  insects  than  birds." 

"The  woodpecker  gets  grubs  and  beetles  from 
the  trunks  and  branches  of  trees." 

"The  kingbird  catches  flies  and  beetles  on  the 
wing." 

"Mr.  Samuels  says,  'Thrushes  rid  the  soil  of 
noxious  insects  not  preyed  upon  by  other  birds.' ' 

"Some  hawks  eat  insects." 


CHAPTER  VI. 
BACTERIA. 

Their  three  general  groups.  Forms  and  growth.  How  bacteria 
may  be  destroyed.  Their  relation  to  the  fertility  of  the  soil. 
How  decay  produced  by  bacteria  increases  fertility  in  soils. 
Decay  of  fruits,  meats,  and  vegetables.  Various  means  of  pre- 
serving food. 

Relation  of  bacteria  to  dairy  products.  Part  bacteria'play  in  making 
butter  and  cheese.  Bacteria  in  vinegar-making. 

In  the  air,  on  the  surface  of  all  objects,  in  water 
and  in  most  all  liquids,  and  in  the  soil  everywhere, 
are  millions  of  very  small  living  things  called  bac- 
teria, or  germs.  They  are  so  small  that,  to  see 
them,  one  requires  the  aid  of  a  compound  micro- 
scope. It  takes  several  thousand  bacteria,  laid  side 
by  side  or  end  to  end,  to  make  a  line  an  inch  long. 
Small  as  they  are,  they  exist  in  such  countless 
numbers  that  their  influence  in  the  world  is  very 
great. 

In  a  very  general  way  it  can  be  said  that  there 
are  three  kinds  of  bacteria, — those  that  are  useful 
to  man,  those  that  are  harmful,  and  those  that  are 
neither  harmful  nor  useful.  However,  when  they 
shall  have  been  studied  more,  the  last  kind  may  be 
classed  with  one  of  the  other  two.  Bacteria  are 
generally  thought  of  as  producing  disease.  It  is 
true  that  a  number  of  species  do  produce  disease; 

151 


152 


LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


but  these  species  are  not  so  numerous  as  the  harm- 
less kinds. 


BACILLUS    SUBT1LIS   IN   HAY    INFUSION. 

a,  short  rod ;  b,  non-motile  rods  and  chains ;  c,  spores ;  d,  motile 
chains;   et  mass  of  spores  forming  a  pellicle. 

FORMS   AND   GROWTH. 

Though  they  are  very  small,  yet  bacteria  have 
definite  shapes.  Some  kinds  are  spherical,  some 
cylindrical,  and  some  spiral.  These  three  general 


BACTERIA,  153 

shapes  represent  all  that  have  been  discovered  and 
studied  up  to  the  present  time.  The  single  bacte- 
rium consists  of  a  single  cell;  and  this  single  cell, 
simple  as  it  is,  carries  on  all  the  processes  of  life. 

As  with  most  one-celled  plants  and  animals,  bac- 
teria multiply  by  division.  The  process  is  a  simple 
one.  The  single  cell  divides  into  two  parts,  giving 
rise  to  two  individuals  instead  of  one.  These  two 
grow  for  a  short  time;  then  each  one  divides  into 
two  equal  parts  and  four  individuals  are  the  result. 
These  four  in  the  same  manner  give  rise  to  eight, 
and  these  eight  to  sixteen,  and  so  on,  the  number 
always  doubling.  Some  kinds  divide  at  short 
intervals — not  more  than  half  an  hour  apart — but 
other  kinds  require  a  longer  time. 

Dividing  once  each  half  hour,  one  bacterium 
could  thus  give  rise  to  several  million  individuals 
during  a  day  of  twenty-four  hours,  as  can  easily  be 
computed.  At  this  rapid  rate  of  multiplication, 
they  would  soon  fill  the  world  if  a  sufficient  food 
supply  were  at  hand.  The  fact  is  that  they  soon 
exhaust  their  food  supply  in  any  one  place  and  die 
of  starvation,  or  are  poisoned  by  the  effect  of  too 
many  living  in  one  small  colony. 

Bacteria  require  moisture  for  their  propagation 
and  growth.  They  are  distributed  everywhere,  but 
active  life  and  growth  are  manifest  only  with  the 
presence  of  moisture.  Bacteria,  as  spores,  are  in 
and  on  all  dry  substances.  Life  in  the  spore  state 
is  dormant,  just  as  life  in  some  higher  plants  is 


154  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

dormant  in  seeds  and  bulbs.  Bacteria  can  exist  in 
this  state  for  a  long  time,  in  many  cases  for  years, 
and  then  become  active  when  the  necessary  mois- 
ture is  supplied. 

In  the  spore  or  resistant  state,  bacteria  are  float- 
ing everywhere  in  large  numbers  in  the  dust  of  the 
atmosphere.  Their  minute  size  makes  this  pos- 
sible. The  more  dust,  of  course,  the  more  germs. 
The  stirring  up  of  dust  on  a  street,  in  a  house,  or 
in  a  stable  sets  afloat  millions  of  bacteria,  to  settle 
again  after  the  air  becomes  quiet.  In  this  manner 
they  are  carried  from  place  to  place  and  from 
object  to  object.  They  never  rise  and  float  away 
from  a  moist  or  liquid  surface. 

HOW  BACTERIA  MAY  BE  DESTROYED. 

Not  only  moisture,  but  a  certain  amount  of  heat 
is  necessary  for  the  growth  of  bacteria.  Too  much 
heat  kills  them.  Boiling  from  a  few  minutes  to 
several  hours  destroys  most  kinds,  but  some  are 
able  to  resist  continued  boiling  in  water  and  are 
killed  only  by  a  much  greater  heat.  The  best  tem- 
perature for  rapid  growth  is  a  little  less  than  mid- 
way between  freezing  and  boiling.  Freezing  stops 
the  growth  but  does  not  destroy  the  life  of  bacteria. 
A  substance  in  which  they  are  growing  may  be 
frozen  for  a  long  time,  stopping  their  growth  for 
the  period;  but,  on  being  thawed,  their  activity 
begins  anew. 

A  great  many  chemical  substances  kill  bacteria. 


BACTERIA.  155 

The  list  is  a  very  long  one.  They  could  be  called, 
in  general,  poisons.  They  are  sometimes  termed 
germicides.  A  chemical  that  kills  one  species  may 
not  have  any  effect  upon  another.  They  are  often 
killed  by  the  excreta  due  to  their  own  growth. 

Bacteria  require  food  just  .as  other  living  things 
do.  Their  food  must  be  in  a  moist,  or  liquid,  con- 
dition. Wherever  there  is  dead  animal  or  vege- 
table matter  in  a  moist  state,  with  the  temperature 
sufficiently  warm,  bacteria  will  begin  to  grow  and 
multiply  and  cause  decomposition.  When  the  tem- 
perature is  low,  such  as  in  ordinary  freezing,  winter 
weather,  their  action  ceases;  but  it  begins  again 
when  the  temperature  rises  much  above  freezing. 

Living,  healthy  plants  and  animals  have  the 
power  to  resist  the  attacks  of  bacteria.  When  life 
ceases,  the  resisting  power  ceases;  so  that  a  plant 
or  animal  begins  to  decay  as  soon  as  it  is  dead, 
especially  in  warm,  moist  weather.  This  decay  is 
always  due  to  the  growth  of  bacteria. 

RELATION    OF    BACTERIA   TO   THE    FERTILITY   OF 
THE   SOIL. 

It  is  a  well-known  fact  among  farmers  that  the 
fertility  of  the  soil  is  soon  exhausted  by  the  succes- 
sive raising  and  clearing  off  of  crops,  if  nothing  is 
given  back  in  return.  For  long  ages  the  earth  has 
produced  countless  numbers  of  plants  and  animals 
which  have  derived  their  sustenance  from  the  soil. 
All  this  time  the  soil  has  not  only  retained  its 


156  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM 

strength,  but  has  added  thereto.  Here  is  where 
these  wonderful  micro-organisms  perform  such  an 
important  part  in  the  physical  and  chemical 
changes  going  on  in  the  earth's  crust. 

As  soon  as  plants  and  animals  die,  decomposi- 
tion sets  in — due  to  the  action  of  bacteria.  When 
their  bodies  fully  decay,  as  much  substance  is 
returned  to  the  earth  as  was  taken  from  it  by  them. 
Another  generation  of  plants  and  animals  uses  up 
this;  but  they,  in  turn,  give  back  their  bodies  in 
decay  to  the  soil.  Thus,  in  nature's  cycle  of 
change,  there  is  a  using  over  and  over  again  of  the 
same  substances;  but  the  powerful  action  of  bac- 
teria makes  it  possible  for  the  complete  transfor- 
mations to  take  place. 

Even  if  the  soil  had  been  extremely  fertile  and 
deep  in  the  beginning,  the  bodies  of  dead  plants 
and  animals  would  have  accumulated  to  such  an 
extent  as  to  make  further  life  impossible,  had  it 
not  been  for  the  presence  of  decomposing  germs. 
Bodies  of  animals  have  been  found  preserved  for 
ages  in  the  ice  of  very  cold  regions.  Decomposi- 
tion did  not  take  place  because  bacteria  are  dor- 
mant at  such  low  temperatures. 

It  is  similar  with  dried  specimens.  Decomposi- 
tion germs  cannot  work  without  the  presence  of 
moisture.  So  bacteria  keep  the  surface  of  the 
earth  free  from  dead  bodies  of  plants  and  animals 
by  decomposing  them  and  returning  them  to  the 
soil  from  whence  they  came.  Bacteria  are  thus 


BACTERIA.  157 

one  of  the  prime  factors  in  making  continued  life 
on  the  globe  possible. 

HOW    DECAY    INCREASES    FERTILITY. 

It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  bacteria  cause 
decay  of  small  creatures  as  well  as  of  large  ones, 
and  that  the  fertility  of  the  soil  is  due  largely  to 
the  decay  of  many  minute  plants  and  animals. 
Untold  millions  of  insects,  and  other  small  animals, 
among  plants  and  in  the  ground,  die  annually. 
Their  bodies  are  covered  with  decomposition 
germs,  too,  and  they  pass  through  the  same  stages 
of  decay  and  change  as  the  higher  forms. 

There  are  few  better  ways  of  increasing  the 
fertility  of  a  piece  of  land  than  to  let  it  "rest";  that 
is,  to  cease  cultivation  and  let  it  grow  up  in  weeds. 
The  increased  fertility  comes  from  the  rapid  decay 
of  the  great  numbers  of  small  plants  and  animals. 
For  this  reason  it  is  always  better  to  let  a  field 
grow  up  in  weeds  than  to  keep  the  surface  clean. 
The  weeds  naturally  afford  forage  and  breeding 
places  for  insects  and  other  small  animals  whose 
life  is  very  short.  They  all  die  and  are  returned 
to  the  soil  at  the  end  of  the  season. 

Bacteria  live  in  the  soil  as  well  as  on  its  surface. 
They  help  to  decompose  organic  matter  mixed 
with  the  soil.  They  are  very  numerous  near  the 
surface,  and  decrease  downward.  At  a  depth  of 
five  or  six  feet  few,  or  none,  are  found. 

Often   organic    matter    in   some   soils   will    not 


158  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

decay.  This  is  not  due  to  the  absence  of  bacteria, 
but  to  conditions  which  prohibit  their  growth. 
Some  low,  wet  soils  are  of  this  nature.  The  soil 
water  holds  acids  in  solution.  These  kill  germs. 
Such  land  generally  becomes  very  productive  when 
well  drained,  for  the  washing  out  of  the  acids  gives 
the  bacteria  a  chance  to  work.  A  good  circula- 
tion of  air  in  the  soil  also  increases  their  action. 

The  decay  of  organic  matter  in  general  is  caused 
by  the  action  of  germs.  Waste  matter  from 
dwellings  and  stables  readily  decomposes  when 
moisture  is  present.  Such  matter  is  generally 
piled  in  heaps  to  prevent  loss  of  moisture  by  evap- 
oration. Since  decomposition  produces  heat,  the 
rate  of  decay  can  be  determined  roughly  by  the 
temperature  of  the  mass. 

Farmers  are  careful  to  harvest  their  crops  and 
store  them  away  in  a  dry  condition.  Wet  grain  or 
hay  will  so  decay  or  "turn  sour"  in  a  day  or  two, 
during  very  warm  weather,  as  to  become  unfit  for 
animal  food.  It  can  then  be  used  only  as  a  fer- 
tilizer. In  some  of  these  cases  decay  is  due  to  the 
growth  of  moulds  and  fungi,  but  the  result  is  the 
same  as  that  produced  by  bacteria;  namely,  the 
reduction  of  the  substances  into  several  elements 
and  compounds,  their  identity  being  destroyed. 

DECAY  OF  FRUITS,  VEGETABLES  AND  MEATS. 

People  have  learned  by  experience  that  a  wound 
caused  by  cutting  or  breaking  the  skin  is  attended 


BACTERIA.  159 

with  serious  results,  if  care  is  not  taken  to  exclude 
the  air.  The  outside  layer  of  skin,  not  being  sup- 
plied with  blood  vessels,  is  germ  proof,  and 
excludes  bacteria  from  the  inner  and  more  delicate 
parts.  In  a  similar  way,  fruits  and  vegetables  are 
covered  with  skin  to  keep  out  decomposition 
germs.  When  this  skin  is  once  broken  germs 
enter,  and  decay  quickly  sets  in. 

Fruits  and  vegetables  contain  a  large  amount  of 
water,  and  for  this  reason  they  are  more  subject  to 
decay  than  grain,  nuts,  beans,  and  their  like,  that 
contain  but  a  small  amount  of  moisture.  When 
the  water  is  taken  from  them,  they  will  keep  for  a 
long  time,  because  germs  cannot  act  without  the 
presence  of  water.  From  this  fact,  the  drying  of 
fruits  and  vegetables  has  come  about.  Meats  are 
dried  for  the  same  reason,  and  will  keep  for  a  long 
time  in  that  condition. 

The  bacteria  in  vegetables,  fruits,  and  meats  can 
be  killed  by  boiling  for  an  hour  or  more.  If  the 
substances  to  be  preserved  are  then  put  in  cans 
which  have  been  thoroughly  cleaned  and  heated  so 
as  to  kill  all  germs,  and  if  the  cans  are  hermetically 
sealed,  they  will  keep  their  contents  sound  for  an 
indefinite  length  of  time.  The  things  necessary  to 
do  in  canning  foods  so  that  they  will  keep,  are  to 
kill  all  germs  in  the  food  and  the  inside  of  the 
cans;  to  seal  while  hot,  so  as  not  to  allow  other 
germs  from  the  air  to  enter,  and  to  keep  sealed 
till  the  whole  contents  of  a  can  are  to  be  used. 


160  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

If  living  germs  have  been  allowed  to  enter  the 
can  with  the  food,  and  decomposition  or  fermenta- 
tion has  set  in,  the  fact  may  at  once  be  known  by 
the  escape  of  confined  gas.  The  principle  of  can- 
ning is  founded  upon  the  fact  that  the  exclusion  of 
bacteria  from  organic  matter  will  prevent  its 
decomposition. 

VARIOUS  MEANS  OF  PRESERVING  FOOD. 

Another  method  of  controlling  the  action  of 
germs  in  food  is  to  reduce  the  temperature  to  near 
the  freezing  point.  The  low  temperature  simply 
keeps  them  from  growing  and  multiplying.  As 
soon  as  the  temperature  rises,  they  begin  to  act  and 
the  food  spoils.  For  this  reason  meats,  fruits,  and 
vegetables  keep  longer  during  winter  and  in  cold 
storage. 

Bacteria  cannot  live  in  a  strong  solution  of  com- 
mon salt  (sodium  chloride),  and  a  great  deal  of 
meat,  and  some  vegetables,  are  preserved  through 
this  means.  The  salt  solution,  however,  produces 
some  changes  in  such  foods,  so  that  they  lose  the 
flavor  of  their  original  freshness. 

Some  meats  are  "cured"  with  common  salt,  or 
other  chemicals;  some,  by  smoking.  Fish  and 
pork  are  thus  treated.  Smoking  coats  the  outside 
of  the  meat  with  a  thin  layer  of  creosote  (crude 
carbolic  acid),  which  not  only  kills  all  germs  pres- 
ent, but  also  gives  the  meat  a  better  flavor.  Car- 
bolic acid  is  a  dangerous  substance  to  take  into  the 


BACTERIA.  161 

human  system  in  very  large  quantities,  but  there  is 
so  little  of  it  on  smoked  meats  that  no  harm  what- 
ever results.  The  smoke  of  most  any  kind  of  wood 
will  preserve  meat,  but  some  kinds  give  better 
flavors  than  others. 

Sugar  is  also  a  preservative  against  the  action  of 
germs.  It  is  used  to  a  limited  extent  in  curing 
meats,  but  very  widely  in  the  preservation  of  fruits. 
Such  fruits  are  cooked  for  a  long  time.  The  cook- 
ing, or  "boiling  down,"  kills  all  germs  present,  and 
drives  off  the  water,  thus  making  conditions  unfit 
for  others  to  grow.  Some  dried  fruits,  such  as  figs, 
dates,  raisins,  and  currants  owe  their  good  keeping 
qualities  to  the  large  amount  of  sugar  present. 

RELATION    OF    BACTERIA   TO    DAIRY    PRODUCTS. 

Milk,  when  freshly  taken  from  the  cow,  contains 
few,  or  no,  bacteria.  During  the  ordinary  proces? 
of  milking,  however,  millions  of  germs  find  their 
way  into  the  milk.  Bacteria  are  floating  in  great 
numbers  in  the  dust  of  barns.  They  are  on  the 
hay,  in  the  litter  on  the  floor,  on  the  hairs  of  the 
cows  and  other  animals,  and  in  the  clothing  and  on 
the  hands  of  the  milker  himself. 

Any  hairs,  dirt,  or  dust  falling  into  the  milk  pail 
carry  with  them  large  numbers  of  germs.  There 
is  generally  a  great  deal  of  dust  in  the  cow  stabl^ 
at  milking  time.  This  is  stirred  up  by  the  handling 
of  hay  and  other  feed.  Cows  shed  their  hair  more 
or  less  all  the  time,  and  it  is  not  uncommon  for 


1G2  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

such  hairs  to  drop  into  the  pail  during  the  process 
of  milking. 

The  milker  often  feeds  the  cows  as  well  as  milks 
them,  consequently  his  hands  are  not  absolutely 
free  from  dirt  and  dust.  Some  of  the  dirt  finds  its 
way  into  the  milk  pail.  Most  hairs,  dirt,  and  other 
foreign  bodies  are  removed  from  the  milk  when  it 
is  strained;  but  the  germs  clinging  to  them  have 
become  mixed  with  the  liquid,  and  harmful  results 
follow. 

The  milk  pail  itself  is  often  a  source  of  contami- 
nation. All  milk  vessels  should  be  carefully 
washed  and  thoroughly  scalded  with  boiling  water. 
When  this  is  not  properly  done,  germs  from  the 
previous  milking,  and  from  other  sources,  are 
given  to  the  fresh  milk.  Sunlight  is  a  good  disin- 
fectant. All  milk  vessels,  after  being  washed, 
should  be  sunned  if  clean,  sweet,  milk  is  desired 

With  the  best  of  care  to  prevent  contamination, 
some  bacteria  always  find  their  way  into  milk 
freshly  taken  from  the  cow.  It  is  difficult,  if  not 
absolutely  impossible,  to  secure  milk  that  has  no 
bacteria  in  it. 

It  is  a  fact  well  known  to  dairymen  that  bacteria 
cause  the  souring  of  milk.  A  small  number  in  the 
milk  multiply  into  large  numbers  in  a  few  hours. 
Here  they  find  water  and  all  essential  foods  for  per- 
fect and  rapid  development,  provided  the  liquid  is 
kept  warm  enough.  On  a  warm  summer  day  the 
fresh  product  will  sour  in  a  few  hours,  if  kept  in 


BACTERIA.  163 

the  free,  open  air.  A  moderate  degree  of  heat 
seems  to  be  all  that  is  needed. 

From  this  fact  has  come  the  method  of  cooling 
milk  to  keep  it  sweet.  Vessels  containing  fresh 
milk,  if  placed  in  the  cold  water  of  wells  or  springs, 
will  attain  a  temperature  low  enough  to  keep  it 
sweet  for  a  day  or  two,  according  to  the  other 
influencing  conditions.  Ice,  too,  is  used  for  cool- 
ing milk,  and  will  keep  it  fresh  for  a  longer  time 
than  ordinary  cold  water.  Milk  kept  on  ice,  or  in 
iced  water,  under  favorable  conditions,  will  stay 
sweet  for  several  days. 

The  cooling  process  does  not  destroy  the  germs, 
but  simply  retards  their  action  and  holds  it  in 
check.  The  germs  are  still  there,  and  will  multiply 
and  grow,  causing  the  milk  to  sour,  as  soon  as  a 
sufficiently  high  temperature  is  restored. 

When  it  is  desired  to  destroy  the  life  of  bacteria 
in  milk,  boiling  from  a  few  minutes  to  an  hour  or 
more  will  accomplish  the  result.  This  is  often 
done  when  harmful  species,  such  as  disease-pro- 
ducing germs,  are  present.  If  the  milk  is  to  be 
used  immediately,  no  further  care  is  necessary; 
but  if  it  is  to  be  kept  for  some  time,  it  should  be 
quickly  cooled,  and  kept  cool  until  needed.  By 
sealing  in  air-tight  cans  while  hot,  milk  will  keep 
sweet  for  a  very  long  time;  in  fact,  almost  indefi- 
nitely, providing  proper  care  is  taken  in  sealing. 
The  only  objection  to  this  method  of  killing  the 
bacteria  in  milk  is  that  the  boiling  produces  a 


1G4  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 

flavor  objectionable  to  some  people.     However,  it 
is  the  safest  plan. 

Certain  chemicals  added  to  milk  will  kill  the 
bacteria  present  and  keep  the  product  fresh  for  a 
long  time.  Some  of  these  are  poisons,  but  so  small 
a  quantity  is  needed  that  harmful  results  need 
not  follow.  However,  in  the  hands  of  ignorant 
or  unskilled  persons,  the  use  of  such  chemicals 
is  a  dangerous  experiment  and  should  not  be 
resorted  to. 

PART  BACTERIA  PLAY  IN  MAKING  BUTTER  AND  CHEESE. 

In  butter-making,  bacteria  play  a  leading  part. 
Fresh  cream  is  sweet,  but  before  it  can  be  made 
into  butter  with  a  good  flavor,  it  must  undergo 
changes.  These  changes  are  called  "ripening." 
Cream,  when  kept  at  the  right  temperature,  sours, 
and  the  souring  is  necessary  to  give  the  product 
the  right  flavor.  Several  species  of  bacteria  often 
work  in  the  same  cream,  and  the  butter  made  from 
such  cream  is  not  of  good  quality.  Each  species 
produces  its  own  peculiar  flavor. 

Butter-makers  are  very  careful  to  exclude  all 
kinds  of  bacteria  except  those  that  give  the  desired 
flavor  and  aroma.  This  is  not  always  possible;  but 
care  and  scientific  methods  have  done  a  great  deal 
to  improve  the  quality  of  butter.  Some  butter- 
makers  have  almost  absolute  control  over  the 
species  and  growth  of  bacteria  in  their  factories, 


BACTERIA.  165 

so  that  they  produce  an  article  highly  flavored  and 
of  a  standard  quality. 

As  soon  as  the  butter  is  made,  most  of  the  bac- 
teria die,  probably  on  account  of  the  small  amount 
of  water  and  the  presence  of  a  great  deal  of 
salt. 

Some,  however,  remain  alive.  These,  after  a 
while,  cause  the  butter  to  change  its  character  and 
become  rancid.  Butter,  to  keep  well,  should  have 
all  of  the  water  worked  out,  and  a  large  amount  of 
common  salt  mixed  with  it.  Salt  kills  bacteria  in 
butter  just  as  it  does  in  meat. 

Cheese-making  is  also  dependent  upon  the 
growth  of  bacteria.  Cheese  is  made  from  the 
casein  of  milk.  This  is  separated  from  the  other 
products  by  rennet.  After  being  separated,  the 
casein  is  pressed  into  a  solid  mass  of  the  shape 
and  size  desired,  and  then  set  away  in  a  moderate 
temperature  to  ripen.  It  takes  weeks,  sometimes 
months,  for  cheese  to  ripen,  depending  upon  the 
kind  and  the  influencing  conditions.  The  slow- 
ness of  the  process  is  probably  due  to  the  fact 
that  a  great  deal  of  water  is  pressed  from  the  mass 
in  reducing  it  to  a  solid  condition. 

Often  bacteria  different  from  the  ones  desired 
get  into  cheese.  These  so  change  the  product  as 
to  make  it  unfit  for  use.  The  cheese-maker  can- 
not always  control  the  germs  in  his  cheese  so  as  to 
produce  grades  of  uniform  quality  and  flavor;  but, 
with  care,  most  of  the  difficulties  can  be  overcome. 


166  LIFE  ON  THE  FARM. 


BACTERIA   IN   VINEGAR-MAKING. 

Vinegar  is  a  weak  solution  of  acetic  acid.  On 
the  farm  it  is  usually  made  of  apple  cider.  The 
juice  of  apples,  and  other  juices  of  similar  compo- 
sition, contain  more  or  less  sugar.  Sugar  is 
readily  converted  into  alcohol,  and  acetic  acid  is 
only  oxidized  alcohol.  The  organic  compounds 
in  cider  are  broken  up  and  reunited  through  the 
action  of  bacteria. 

Apple  cider,  in  warm  weather,  after  standing  for 
about  twenty-four  hours,  gives  off  bubbles  of  gas. 
The  gas  is  carbon  dioxide  and  the  process  is  fer- 
mentation. The  gas  gives  the  cider  a  sparkling 
appearance  and  a  spicy  taste.  After  fermenting 
for  another  day  or  two,  the  cider  acquires  a  strong, 
sour  taste.  In  a  few  weeks  of  change,  the  product 
is  vinegar. 

The  bacteria  in  the  cider  grow  into  a  vast 
colony,  forming  a  solid,  slimy  mass  known  as 
"mother  of  vinegar."  They  get  into  the  cider 
first  from  the  barrel  itself,  and  from  the  air;  but 
the  process  may  be  hastened  by  introducing  some 
mother  of  vinegar.  Sweet  cider  makes  stronger 
and  better  vinegar  than  other  kinds  from  the  fact 
that  it  contains  more  sugar. 

Vinegar  is  made  in  different  ways  and  from 
different  substances,  but  in  most  cases  commercial 
vinegar  is  produced  directly  by  the  action  of  bac- 
teria. 


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